Production of Mushroom Frillting Bodies on the Surface of Submerged Cultures

Abstract

3 to 4 da of plating. A stage micrometer was used to follow the development of individual primordia. Cultures were maintained at 22 C. Pycnidium primordia in M. phaseoli were initiated as hyphal rings or mycelial knots. Hyphal rings were formed by several hyphae looping around each other (FIG. 1). The ring primordium in its earliest stages sometimes resembled a hyphal coil (FIG. 2). Other primordia developed from mycelial knots in a compound meristogenous or symphogenous manner. Compound meristogenous development was initiated when contact occurred between adjacent hyphae to produce a mycelial knot (FIG. 3). Occasionally two or more pycnidia developed among the interwoven hyphae. Simple meristogenous development where a single cell of a hypha divided to form a pycnidium primordium was seldom found (FIG. 4). Symphogenous development occurred when several branching hyphae radiated to one point. A pycnidium formed from the mycelial knot initiated by the tips of these contacting hyphae (FIG. 5). Once initiated, most primordia developed into mature fruiting bodies within 3 da (FIG. 6). The morphological characteristics of mature pycnidia were not influenced by variations in the primordia. This investigation on the origin of pycnidia in M. phaseoli confirms the presence of ring primordia as reported in Phyllosticta antirrhini.