Abstract
The sequencing of fungal genomes is advancing at breakneck-speed, producing voluminous amounts of data. Within the next five years, it is possible that over a couple thousand genomes, representing every major fungal family will be completed and available to the scientific community. In order for this data to have a truly transformative effect on mycological and other research, however, several factors need to be addressed. These include; (1) the establishment of user friendly platforms for examining, sorting, and sifting through the genomes, (2) integration, or at least cross-communication, between the various databases that house the genomic data, and (3) investment in community resources that can act as repositories for and provide materials to researchers, i.e. strains, clones, plasmids, etc. The frameworks for some these needs, e.g. the materials available from the Fungal Genetics Stock Center (FGSC, University of Missouri), are already established and should be reinforced, whereas for others, e.g. data accessibility, the sooner that a plan can be implemented the better. The Fungal Kingdom is considered to contribute greater than 15% of the species richness found in the major groups of organisms .This study is a reflection of the usefulness of sequence analysis of the 28S ribosomal RNA gene in identifying fungal as well as determining fungal diversity. Various techniques that are based on utilizing the 28S rRNA have been discussed. Of critical importance is the manner in which massively parallel sequencing was exploited to correct the under representation of fungal species in compilations of fungal hat were drawn using traditional methods of surveying fungal species from ecosystems.
Highlights
The Fungal Kingdom is considered to contribute greater than 15% of the species richness found in the major groups of organisms [1]
Often noticeable in soils only in their fruiting body form, a largely hidden under- or inaccessible world is populated by fungal organisms performing ecological functions that have significant impacts on plant, animal, and even other microbial communities
Approaches to identifying and studying fungal diversity often relied on the traditional methods of plating fungi on agar
Summary
The Fungal Kingdom is considered to contribute greater than 15% of the species richness found in the major groups of organisms [1]. Often noticeable in soils only in their fruiting body form, a largely hidden under- or inaccessible world is populated by fungal organisms performing ecological functions that have significant impacts on plant, animal, and even other microbial communities. Fungal contenders exist for our planet’s largest and amongst the oldest organisms, i.e. Armillaria solidipes known as the honey mushroom found in the Malheur National Forest in Oregon, estimated at being between 2000-9,000 years old, spans over several thousand acres. The current total number of fungal species is estimated at over 1.5 million with a little over 100,000 described to date. The described fungi have been placed into approximately 140 orders and over 550 families
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