One New Species and Two New Host Records of Apiospora from Bamboo and Maize in Northern Thailand with Thirteen New Combinations

Xingguo Tian,Itthayakorn Promputtha,Saowaluck Tibpromma,Jianchu Xu,Danfeng Bao,Samantha C Karunarathna,Ausana Mapook

doi:10.3390/life11101071

Abstract

The genus Apiospora is known as a cosmopolitan genus, found across various substrates. In this study, four Apiospora taxa were obtained from the decaying stems of bamboo and maize in northern Thailand. Apiospora collections were compared with known species based on the morphological characteristics and the DNA sequence data of internal transcribed spacer (ITS), the partial large subunit nuclear rDNA (LSU), the translation elongation factor 1-alpha gene (TEF1-α) and beta-tubulins (TUB2). Apiospora chiangraiense sp. nov. and two new host records (Ap. intestini and Ap. rasikravindra) are introduced here based on the morphological characteristics and multi-locus analyses. Additionally, thirteen species previously identified as Arthrinium are introduced as new combinations in Apiospora, viz., Ap. acutiapica, Ap. bambusicola, Ap. biserialis, Ap. cordylines, Ap. cyclobalanopsidis, Ap. euphorbiae, Ap. gelatinosa, Ap. locuta-pollinis, Ap. minutispora, Ap. pseudorasikravindrae, Ap. septate, Ap. setariae and Ap. sorghi.

Highlights

Apiospora was introduced by Saccardo with Ap. montagnei as the type species [1]
Fresh specimens of bamboo and maize culms with fungal fruiting bodies were collected from Chiang Rai, Thailand from September–October 2020
The morphological characteristics were examined under a stereomicroscope (Motic SMZ-171, Wetzlar, Germany)

Summary

Introduction

Apiospora was introduced by Saccardo with Ap. montagnei as the type species [1]. The genus was reported in both sexual and asexual morphs. The sexual morphs are characterized by multi-locular perithecial stromata with hyaline ascospores surrounded by a thick gelatinous sheath [2,3,4]. The asexual morph of Apiospora was characterized by basauxic conidiogenesis, with globose to subglobose conidia, which are usually lenticular in the side view, obovoid and pale brown to brown [2,5,6]. Species of Apiospora are similar in morphology, it is difficult to distinguish them without molecular phylogenetic data. The size, color and shape of conidia and the morphology of conidiophores (e.g., size, shape and septation) should be used together to better identify them. Conidiophores of some species reduce to conidiogenous cells (e.g., Ap. bambusae, Ap. acutiapicum), while some species have semi-micronematous to macronematous conidiophores (e.g., Ap. bambusicola, Ap. intestini)

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