Hypholoma lateritiumisolated from coarse woody debris, the forest floor, and mineral soil in a deciduous forest in New Hampshire

Abstract

Fungi in the Agaricomycetes (Basidiomycota) are the primary decomposers in temperate forests of dead wood on and in the forest soil. Through the use of isolation techniques selective for saprotrophic Agaricomycetes, a variety of wood decay fungi were isolated from a northern hardwood stand in the Bartlett Experimental Forest, New Hampshire, USA. In particular, Hypholoma lateritium (Schaeff.: Fr.) P. Kumm. was isolated from basidiocarps, decaying Acer rubrum L. logs, the Oe organic soil horizon, and the E and BC mineral soil horizons. Identification was confirmed by sequence analysis of the internal transcribed spacer region of nuclear ribosomal DNA. All isolates had identical sequences in this region to previously published sequences for the species; some were monokaryotic and simple-septate and others were dikaryotic, with clamp connections. Isolates were further characterized by banding patterns (DNA fingerprints) produced with PCR primers based in simple repetitive sequences and the minisatellite M13. Nine dikaryotic isolates from basidiocarps and from soil horizons Oe, E, and BC had identical fingerprint patterns with all primers tested. The confirmed presence of H. lateritium suggests that this fungus could form a mycelial translocation network that bridges mineral and organic soil horizons and decaying logs.