Seiridium (Sporocadaceae): An important genus of plant pathogenic fungi

G. Bonthond, M. Sandoval-Denis, J. Z. Groenewald, P. W. Crous*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal/periodicalArticleScientificpeer-review

36 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The genus Seiridium includes multiple plant pathogenic fungi well-known as causal organisms of cankers on Cupressaceae. Taxonomically, the status of several species has been a topic of debate, as the phylogeny of the genus remains unresolved and authentic ex-type cultures are mostly absent. In the present study, a large collection of Seiridium cultures and specimens from the CBS and IMI collections was investigated morphologically and phylogenetically to resolve the taxonomy of the genus. These investigations included the type material of the most important Cupressaceae pathogens, Seiridium cardinale, S. cupressi and S. unicorne. We constructed a phylogeny of Seiridium based on four loci, namely the ITS rDNA region, and partial translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF), β-tubulin (TUB) and RNA polymerase II core subunit (RPB2). Based on these results we were able to confirm that S. unicorne and S. cupressi represent different species. In addition, five new Seiridium species were described, S. cupressi was lectotypified and epitypes were selected for S. cupressi and S. eucalypti.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)96-118
Number of pages23
JournalPersoonia: Molecular Phylogeny and Evolution of Fungi
Volume40
Issue numberJune
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2018

Keywords

  • Appendage-bearing conidia
  • Canker pathogen
  • Cupressus
  • Pestalotioid fungi
  • Systematics

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