Isozyme variation in the fungus Atkinsonella hypoxylon within and among populations of its host grasses

Abstract

Isozyme variation of 291 isolates of Atkinsonella hypoxylon (Clavicipitaceae, tribe Balansieae) from 24 populations of its four known host grasses (Danthonia compressa, Danthonia sericea, Danthonia spicata, and Stipa leucotricha) was examined using starch gel electrophoresis. In total, there were 20 distinct multilocus genotypes. Eleven out of 13 enzyme loci (84.6%) exhibited more than one allele (mean 2.8) per locus. Nei's total gene diversity (HT) within all isolates was 0.229. Between isolate samples from S. leucotricha and the three Danthonia hosts, Nei's genetic identity (I) ranged from 0.21 to 0.31 and among isolate samples from the three Danthonia species I ranged from 0.65 to 0.88, with isolates from D. spicata and D. compressa being most similar. Variation of A. hypoxylon occurred both within and among populations of D. spicata and D. compressa, where up to 53 isolates were sampled per host population. In contrast, all 20 isolates from S. leucotricha were identical, as were all 6 from D. sericea. A few isolates from D. spicata exhibited the same, unusual multilocus genotype with unique alleles at six different loci. The occurrence of several multilocus genotypes in isolates from the same ascostroma and the 1:1 segregation of genotypes among ascospores from a single ascus indicated gene exchange among sexually reproducing individuals, consistent with a heterothallic mating system for A. hypoxylon.