Abstract
A novel genus Parametarhizium with two new entomopathogenic species, Parametarhizium changbaiense and Parametarhizium hingganense, was introduced based on their morphological characteristics and a multigene phylogenetic analysis, which were isolated from the forest litters collected in Northeast China. To infer their phylogenetic relationships, a six-gene dataset consisting of DNA fragments of [nuclear small subunit rDNA (SSU) + LSU + TUB + TEF + RPB1 + RPB2] was used for phylogenetic analysis, including 105 related fungi. The new genus Parametarhizium formed a monophyletic clade basal to Metarhizium and its related genera (formerly Metarhizium sensu lato). Parametarhizium can be morphologically distinguished from related genera by the combination of the following characteristics: formation of white to yellow colonies on different media, candelabrum-like arrangement of cylindrical or obpyriform phialides, and small subglobose to ellipsoidal conidia. Both P. hingganense and P. changbaiense exhibited anti-insect activities against three farmland pests Monolepta hieroglyphica, Callosobruchus chinensis, and Rhopalosiphum maidis. This is the first report of entomopathogenic fungi exhibiting the anti-insect activity against Mo. hieroglyphica.
Highlights
Fungi are diverse, with over 144,000 species (Willis, 2018), and about 2,000 new species are described every year (Hawksworth and Lücking, 2017)
We proposed one new genus with two new species which are related to members of the Metarhizium complex
According to the pairwise nucleotide sequence similarities for seven loci (Figure 2), the close relatives of P. changbaiense and P. hingganense are genus Metarhizium and its related genera
Summary
With over 144,000 species (Willis, 2018), and about 2,000 new species are described every year (Hawksworth and Lücking, 2017). Fungi are a valuable natural resource and can be applied in agriculture and industry, such as biocontrol agents and antibiotic production (Aly et al, 2011; Filizola et al, 2019; Hyde et al, 2019). Besides the species from the genera Metarhizium, Beauveria, and Trichoderma, the anti-insect activities of other fungi deserve to be investigated extensively, especially newly discovered fungal species
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