Background: Skin infections with dermatophytes are human common infections called Tinea. The most common cause of the Tinea in the world is Trichophyton rubrum. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), such as hBD-3 and RNase 7, are potent molecules in the inherent immunity of the skin, which potentially have anti-microbial effects and quickly eliminate microorganisms, which themselves are affected by the Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) gene and by increasing the expression of this gene in skin cells activates and prevents cloning of organisms, including dermatophytes, in keratinocytes. However, with the increase in the expression of micro-RNAs and in particular miR-212 in the study, the EGFR gene mRNA is muted. 
 Objectives: The purpose of this project was to determine the changes in the expression of miR-212 and EGFR genes in clinical infected samples with T.rubrum in the affected areas, as compared to adjacent healthy spots.
Materials and Methods: The number of specimens considered in this study was 72: 36 infected specimens with T. rubrum and 36 control specimens from healthy margins of the lesion (with about 15 to 20 cm) of the same patients. All specimens were immediately transferred to the -70 °C freezer. The fungus was cultivated on Sabouraud’s Dextrose Agar (SDA) medium and slide culture technique was performed to observe the fungal reproductive system. Extraction and optimization of total RNA and synthesis and optimization of cDNA for EGFR and miR-212 genes were performed. Amplification of these target genes and internal control genes (GAPDH and miR-103a-3p) was performed on Real-Time PCR (SYBR green method). In data aggregation and analysis, changes in target genes expression were calculated with 2–ΔΔCt ratio.
Results: For data analysis, correlation coefficient tests and, if necessary, paired t-test were used. P value was considered<0.05. In tissue samples infected with T.rubrum, miR-212 reduces expression of EGFR gene significantly and in these samples, the expression of miR-212 gene compared to the expression of EGFR gene shows 8 times increasing. In control tissue sample, the expression of miR-212 is much lower than EGFR gene expression. 
Conclusion: By increasing the expression of miR-212 in this study, the mRNA function of the EGFR gene has been turned off, which this EGFR expression's reduction causes reduction of the AMPs that leads to colonization of T.rubrum dermatophyte and creation of Tinea on the skin.

Determination the expression of miR-212 and EGFR genes in Trichophyton rubrum in affected areas in comparison with adjacent healthy spots