Fungalpedia – Note 523, Austroafricana

 

Austroafricana Quaedvl. & Crous

Citation when using this data: Tibpromma et al. 2024 (in prep.) – Fungalpedia, Fungal pathogens.

Index Fungorum, Facesoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank, Fig. 1 

Classification: Teratosphaeriaceae, Mycosphaerellales, Dothideomycetidae, Dothideomycetes, Pezizomycotina, Ascomycota, Fungi.

Quaedvlieg et al. (2014) introduced Austroafricana within Teratosphaeriaceae in Mycosphaerellales with the type species Austroafricana associata based on combined ITS and LSU sequence data. Morphologically, Austroafricana is similar to Teratosphaeria, and it is difficult to identify characteristics to separate them (Quaedvlieg et al. 2014). Austroafricana characterized by subepidermal to erumpent, pseudothecial, black ascomata, fasciculate, bitunicate, obovoid to ellipsoidal, aparaphysate, but with remains of hamathecium visible asci, fusoid-ellipsoidal with obtuse ends, tri to multiseriate, overlapping medianly 1-septate, tapering towards both ends, but more prominently towards the lower end, with or without persistent mucus sheath ascospores (Quaedvlieg et al. 2014). Currently, three species viz; Austroafricana associata (type species), A. keanei, and A. parva (a pathogen of Eucalyptus and Proteaceae (Crous et al. 2008)) have been accepted. Members of this genus have been reported to be pathogenic species that co-colonize host lesions and exhibit a broad host range in Australia and South Africa (Quaedvlieg et al. 2014).

Type species: Austroafricana associata (Crous & Carnegie) Quaedvl. & Crous

Other accepted species: Species Fungorum – search Austroafricana

Figure 1 –Morphology of Austroafricana associata. a Ascus. b-c Ascospores. Scale bars: a-c = 10 μm. Redrawn from Crous et al. (2007).

 

References

Crous PW, Summerell BA, Carnegie A, Mohammed C et al. 2007 – Foliicolous Mycosphaerella spp. and their anamorphs on Corymbia and Eucalyptus. Fungal Diversity 26, 143–185.

Crous PW, Summerell BA, Mostert L, Groenewald JZ. 2008 – Host specificity and speciation of Mycosphaerella and Teratosphaeria species associated with deaf spots of Proteaceae. Persoonia 20, 59–86.

Quaedvlieg W, Binder M, Groenewald JZ, Summerell BA et al. 2014 – Introducing the consolidated species concept to resolve species in the Teratosphaeriaceae. Persoonia-Molecular Phylogeny and Evolution of Fungi 33(1), 1–40.

 

Entry by

Zhang X, Excellence Center of Microbial Diversity and Sustainable Utilization, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand; Center for Yunnan Plateau Biological Resources Protection and Utilization, College of Biological Resource and Food Engineering, Qujing Normal University, Qujing, Yunnan 655011, China

 

(Edited by Saowaluck Tibpromma, Samaneh Chaharmiri-Dokhaharani, & Achala R. Rathnayaka)

 

Published online 9 December 2024

Back to Glossary Index Page