Polyporus accommodates species with stipitate basidiocarps, a dimitic hyphal system with skeleto-binding hyphae, and hyaline, thin-walled, more or less cylindrical basidiospores. The species of Polyporus are divided into six morphological groups, of which Melanopus is characterized by coriaceous basidiocarps, thin context and a black cuticle on the stipe. In this study, we explore the phylogeny and species diversity of Polyporus sensu lato focusing on the group Melanopus based on global samples. Our combined ITS and nLSU dataset included 117 collections represented by 117 ITS and 94 nLSU sequences, of which 43 ITS and 37 nLSU sequences were newly generated. The resulting phylogenetic analysis recovered four clades, Favolus, Neofavolus, Melanopus and Polyporellus clades, while several species in the morphological groups Melanopus and Polyporus were outside these clades. Combined with morphological evidence, three new species in the Melanopus clade, Polyporus americanus, P. austroandinus and P. conifericola, are newly described and illustrated, and their distinctive characters are discussed. The illegitimate name Polyporus fraxineus is renamed as Polyporus fraxinicola. The phylogeny and taxonomy of each species in group Melanopus (morphology) or Melanopus clade (phylogeny) and related species are briefly discussed.

Xylariaceous endophytes are commonly encountered in plants, and it has recently been found out that insect vectors play a major role in their life cycle, as well as in the apparent host-specificity of the fungal stromata. In this study, a new insect-associated, endophytic anamorph species of Daldinia is recognised from a comparison of a) morphological and ecological data; b) molecular phylogenetic data based on rDNA, alpha-actin and beta-tubulin genes; and c) secondary metabolite profiles based on high performance liquid chromatography/diode array/mass spectrometry (HPLC-DAD/MS) and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) in comparison with authentic strains of Daldinia and other Xylariaceae. The new species, Daldinia hawksworthii, is a symbiont of the willow woodwasp, Xiphydria prolongata, which is in turn preferentially associated with Salix. A comparison of HPLC-DAD/MS profiles from standardised cultures revealed the presence of a specific compound, which was not encountered in any of the ca. 250 Daldinia strains studied for comparison. This compound was isolated after fermentation of the fungus in 10 l scale by preparative chromatography. Structure elucidation by NMR spectroscopy revealed a novel pyrone, for which the name dalsymbiopyrone is proposed. The compound showed weak antimicrobial and cytotoxic effects and might be a signal molecule involved in the trilateral ecological interaction between the host plant, the insect, and its fungal symbiont.

To confirm species delimitations in the ‘jeanselmei-clade’ in the Chaetothyriales, four independent markers were analysed, and phylogenetic trees were reconstructed using different algorithms. Reproductive isolation within the complex and reproductive modes in the species involved were determined, in order to explore specific borderlines using Genealogical Concordance Phylogenetic Species Recognition (GCPSR). Sequences of the Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS), partial Translation Elongation Factor 1-α (TEF1), β-Tubulin (BT2), and Actin (ACT1) genes were analysed for a set of 81 strains. Phylogenetic reconstruction was performed using neighbour-joining (NJ), maximum parsimony (MP), maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian analysis (BA) to evaluate the concordance of topologies obtained under different optimization criteria. Incongruence among lineages was detected by Partition Homogeneity Test (PHT). Most Exophiala species analysed in this study seemed to be preponderantly clonal. A group of species around Exophiala spinifera showed a tendency toward human pathogenicity, whereas species around E. bergeri were often associated with environments rich in hydrocarbons. Though the tree topologies were not completely identical when different algorithms were used, the four gene lineages were nearly congruent and the trees of the combined multilocus data set did not provide more phylogenetic information than those of separate data sets. ITS data are sufficient for identification of species in the ‘jeanselmei-clade’.

Endophytic microbes have attracted considerable attention as a completely new source of pharmaceuticals in recent years. An endophytic Fusarium tricinctum was isolated from Rhododendron tomentosum, a shrub that is found widely across the northern hemisphere. The endophytic F. tricinctum produced antimicrobial compounds that were active against Staphylococcus carnosus, Candida albicans and C. utilis. The transcriptome of the F. tricinctum was sequenced, and a total of 12,006 contigs were assembled, having an N50 value of 1390 bp. Analysis of the transcriptomic PD library of F. tricinctum yielded an antimicrobial peptide named Trtesin. The expression of Trtesin transcripts was >1000 fold in the mRNA library originating from PDB-grown fungi exhibiting high antimicrobial activity compared to FG4-grown fungi with no antimicrobial activity. Trtesin was cloned, expressed, and purified in pET32(a), and it consisted of 52 amino acids with 6 cysteine molecules. The molecular weight of Trtesin is 6138.92 Da. An additional N-terminal sequencing was done to confirm the intact peptide, as well as to check the correct amino acid sequence. The MIC of Trtesin was determined against several bacteria as 64 μg/mL, and peptide showed a mild activity against F. oxysporum in agar diffusion assay, as a zone of inhibition of 10 mm was formed at 100 μg of peptide.

Diabetes mellitus is a life-threatening chronic metabolic disease caused by lack of insulin and/or insulin dysfunction, characterized by high levels of glucose in the blood (hyperglycemia). Millions worldwide suffer from diabetes and its complications. Significantly, it has been recognized that type 2 diabetes is an important preventable disease and can be avoided or delayed by lifestyle intervention. Presently, there are many chemical and biochemical hypoglycemic agents (synthetic drugs), that are used in treating diabetes and are effective in controlling hyperglycemia. However, as they may have harmful side-effects and fail to significantly alter the course of diabetic complications, natural anti-diabetic drugs from medicinal plants have attracted a great deal of attention. Medicinal mushrooms have been valued as a traditional source of natural bioactive compounds over many centuries and have been targeted as potential hypoglycemic and anti-diabetic agents. Bioactive metabolites including polysaccharides, proteins, dietary fibres, and many other biomolecules isolated from medicinal mushrooms and their cultured mycelia have been shown to be successful in diabetes treatment as biological anti-hyperglycemic agents. In this review we discuss the biological nature of diabetes and, in particular, explore some promising mushrooms that have experimental anti-diabetic properties, preventing or reducing the development of diabetes mellitus. The importance of medicinal mushrooms as agents of medical nutrition therapy and how their metabolites can be used as supportive candidates for prevention and control of diabetes is explored. Future prospects for this field of study and the difficulties and constraints that might affect the development of rational drug products from medicinal mushrooms are discussed.

The genus Diaporthe (Phomopsis) includes important plant pathogenic fungi with wide host ranges and geographic distributions. In the present study, phylogenetic species recognition in Diaporthe is re-evaluated using a multi-locus phylogeny based on a combined data matrix of rDNA ITS, and partial sequences from the translation elongation factor 1-α (EF 1-α), β tubulin (TUB) and calmodulin (CAL) molecular markers. DNA sequences of available ex-type cultures have been included, providing a multi-locus backbone tree for future studies on Diaporthe. Four utilizable loci were analyzed individually and in combination, and ITS, EF 1-α and multi-locus phylogenetic trees are presented. The phylogenetic tree inferred by combined analysis of four loci provided the best resolution for species as compared to single gene analysis. Notes are provided for nine species previously known in Phomopsis that are transferred to Diaporthe in the present study. The unraveling of cryptic species complexes of Diaporthe based on Genealogical Concordance Phylogenetic Species Recognition (GCPSR) is emphasized.

Truffle-like fungi are highly diverse yet poorly known in Australia. To assess the species richness, biomass, and community assemblages of truffle-like fungi in different habitats we sampled sporocarps of truffle-like fungi in three eucalypt-dominated forest types (grassy woodland, wet sclerophyll forest, and dry sclerophyll forest) once in summer and once in winter, at two sites (Mount Kaputar and New England) in northern New South Wales, Australia. One hundred and eighteen species in 35 genera were collected; over half (51.7 %) of the species were undescribed. Grassy woodland and wet forest communities had greater species richness and a lower standing crop than dry forest communities. Species richness and standing crop was greater in winter than in summer. Overall, species from the family Russulaceae, and the genera Dermocybe, Descomyces, and Hysterangium were dominant. Community composition varied among forest types and each forest type exhibited a suite of unique and common species, although much variation was unexplained. Variation in community structure was associated with some habitat attributes; at Mount Kaputar, woody plant species richness, canopy cover, litter depth, soil phosphorous, and elevation helped explain the sporocarp communities of different forest types, while at New England, woody plant species richness, rainfall, topographic aspect, soil texture, and soil nitrogen helped explain communities. This work contributes to knowledge of truffle-like fungal diversity, the factors affecting sporocarp distribution across landscapes, and the availability of sporocarps as a food resource for mycophagous mammals. Greater understanding of fungal diversity and mammal-fungal interactions also has important implications for managing forest biodiversity.

Molecular phylogenetic analyses of LSU rDNA demonstrate monophyly of the genus Melanconiella, and its status as a genus distinct from Melanconis is confirmed. Data of macro- and microscopic morphology, pure cultures and phylogenetic analyses of partial SSU-ITS-LSU rDNA, tef1 and rpb2 sequences revealed 13 distinct species of Melanconiella, six of which are described as new (M. chrysodiscosporina, M. chrysomelanconium, M. chrysorientalis, M. echinata, M. elegans, M. meridionalis). Melanconiella hyperopta var. orientalis is described as a new variety. Diaporthe carpinicola, D. ellisii, D. flavovirens, D. hyperopta and D. ostryae are formally combined into Melanconiella. The name Melanconiella chrysostroma is excluded from Melanconiella, as it is an obligate synonym of Wuestneia xanthostroma. The type of Melanconiella is confirmed as M. spodiaea. Several species are lecto- and/or epitypified. A key to all treated species of Melanconiella is provided, and the circumscriptions of the genera Melanconis and Melanconiella are emended. Most Melanconiella species revealed by molecular phylogenetic analyses can be well characterised by a suite of morphological traits including ascospore shape, length and width, colour, absence/presence and shape of appendages and the anamorph. Anamorph-teleomorph connections were confirmed by pure culture and DNA data, revealing the presence of a single melanconium- or discosporina-like anamorph for each species. Colony growth was found to be characteristic of the respective species. Melanconiella is shown to be confined to the host family Betulaceae, and all species are found to be highly host-specific, mostly confined to a single host species. The biodiversity of Melanconiella was determined to be centred on the genus Carpinus with nine species, five of which have been confirmed on C. betulus. Europe appears to be the geographic centre of Melanconiella biodiversity.

Mycological tools to estimate the effects of diverse land-use practices on fungal diversity are scarce, because of poor knowledge of the taxonomic diversity of tropical fungi and their response to anthropogenic habitat change. Here, we investigate assemblages of fungal spores, recently deposited in the bottom sediments of 24 small crater lakes in western Uganda, to assess the relationship between the local richness of fungi and environmental variation in the crater basin along regional gradients of natural vegetation and land use. We recovered ~9500 fungal spore specimens, which could be attributed to 216 morphotypes. Using an information-theoretic approach based on the corrected Akaike Information Criterion (AICc), we determined the environmental factors which best explained variation in the diversity of fungal spores among three datasets: (i) the full set of 24 crater basins, (ii) the subset of 22 basins with freshwater lakes, and (iii) the subset of 17 basins partly or completely in agricultural use (cropland, fallow land, pasture and plantation). In these 17 human-impacted crater basins our results revealed a negative relationship between fungal spore richness and the areal fraction of basins in agricultural use. However, this detrimental effect of land use on fungal spore richness was not apparent across the full set of both disturbed and (presently) undisturbed basins. This was due to large variation in fungal spore richness among the undisturbed basins covered either with forest or savannah vegetation, probably resulting from site-specific controls on fungal habitat diversity, such as climatic moisture balance and the composition of natural and/or secondary vegetation. The land-use effects on fungal spore diversity, as documented in this study, suggest that communities of tropical fungi progressively exposed to land-use practices are threatened by species loss. Hence, our study demonstrates the need to develop conservation strategies mitigating the impacts of agriculture on the biodiversity of tropical fungi.