Apiospora guiyangensis Samarak., Jian K. Liu & K.D. Hyde, in Samarakoonet al., Fungal Diversity 112: 19 (2022).
Index Fungorum number: IF 558711; MycoBank number: MB 558711; Facesoffungi number: FoF 10187; Fig. 1
Saprobic on a dead twig of Bothriochloa ischaemum. Sexual morph: Stromata visible as fusiform, black, erumpent pustules with alongitudinal slit on the top. Ascomata 123–165×109–185 (x̄ =140×130, n=10) μm, subglobose, unilocular, immersed, papillate, arranged in a linear row along with the thelongitudinal slit. Peridium 11–15 (x̄ =13, n=10) μm in width, consisting of dark brown cell of textura angularis, thin at base, becoming thicker near the ostioles, with a pseudoparenchymatous wall at the most inner layer. Paraphyses 3.6–7.6 (x̄ =5.2, n=10) μm, hyaline, cylindrical, septate, guttulate. Asci 60–84 × 9.3–13 ( x̄ =70 × 11, n=20) μm, fusiform, unitunicate, 8-spored, apex lacking apical mechanism, with a short basal pedicel. Ascospores 22–28×4.6–6.7 (x̄ =25×5.4, n=30) μm, hyaline, ellipsoid to reniform, slightly curve, smooth-walled, aseptate, guttulate. Asexual morph: see description in Samarakoon et al. (2022).
Culture characteristics – Colonies on PDA rapid growing, reaching 45 mm diam. after 8 days at 20–25 °C, colonies medium dense, circular, mycelium superficial in media, cottony, round aspect, white from above and reverse.
Material examined – China, Guizhou Province, Qianxinan Buyei and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, Ceheng County, Gaofeng Village, on dead culms of Bothriochloa ischaemum (Poaceae), 8 August 2018, D. P. Wei, GFC613 (KUN-HKAS 125898), living culture KUNCC22-12539.
Known hosts and distribution – Poaceae (Guizhou, China) (Samarakoon et al. 2022).
GenBank numbers – OQ029540 (ITS), OQ029613(LSU), OQ061263(SSU), OQ186444(tef1), OQ186446 (tub2)
Notes – Apiospora guiyangensis was introduced by Samarakoon et al. (2022) from an unidentified Poaceae species in Guizhou, China. Our species colonizing on dead column of Bothriochloa ischaemum (Poaceae) was collected from the same province of type strains of A. guiyangensis. Its sexual morph fits well to the description of A. guiyangensis in the linear stromata with a slit-like opening, immersed, subglobose, gregarious, ascomata and ellipsoid to reniform ascospores. Additionally, the phylogenetic analysis of a combination of ITS-LSU-tef1 -tub2 shows our isolate sisters to A. guiyangensis with ML=100% and BYPP=1.00 support (Fig. 2). Thus, we determine our isolate as a new collection of A. guiyangensis and this finding indicates that A. guiyangensis probably specific to Poaceae.
Figure 1 – Apiospora guiyangensis (KUN-HKAS 125898, new host record) a Host. b, c Appearance of ascostroma on host. d, e Section through ascomata. f Peridium. g Paraphysis. h–j Asci (j is stained in cotton blue). k–m Ascospores. n Germinal spore. o Upper and reverse view of cultures on PDA at 8 days incubation. Scale bars: d=300 μm, e=50 μm, f, h–j, n=20 μm, k–m=10 μm
Figure 2 – RAxML tree inferred from combined ITS, LSU, rpb2 and tub2 sequence. Bootstrap support for maximum likelihood analysis≥50% and Bayesian posterior probabilities≥0.95 are denoted next to the notes in this order. The new collection is marked in blue bold font