Fungalpedia – Note 3293, Dipodascomycetes
Dipodascomycetes M. Groenew., Hittinger, Opulente & A. Rokas, Stud. Mycol. 105: 10 (2023)
Citation when using this data: Wijayawardene NN et al. 2024 – Fungalpedia.
Index Fungorum, Faceoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank, Fig 1e, f.
Classification: Saccharomycotina, Ascomycota, Dikarya, Fungi.
Notes: The class Dipodascomycetes in the subphylum Saccharomycotina was introduced by Groenewald et al. (2023), who, based on the analysis of genomic data, proposed the distribution of the yeasts assigned to Saccharomycotina among seven classes. They provided a diagnosis of Dipodascomycetes with class-specific orthologous groups of proteins (OGs). For more details, see the entry on Saccharomycetes. ITS rDNA phylogeny combined with nDNA/DNA reassociation data and physiological characters of ascomycete yeasts reproducing mainly by arthric conidiogenesis were used for species delimitation in Geotrichum and related genera by de Hoog and Smith (2004). As a result, they classified the teleomorphs of Geotrichum under genera Galactomyces and Dipodascus while Magnusiomyces with Saprochaete anamorphs accommodated the related group of arthroconidium forming yeasts. Several yeast species currently assigned to Dipodascomycetes were studied by means of multigene phylogenetic analysis by Kurtzman and Robnett (2007), who also proposed Sugiyamaella. Recent genome-scale phylogenetic studies (Shen et al. 2016, 2018, 2020) also included several taxa from class Dipodascomycetes.
According to Groenewald et al. (2023) the class currently comprises one order, Dipodascales, two families Dipodascaceae and Trichomonascaceae and 17 genera. The members of the class have been reported as important taxa in medical and other industries (e.g. Galactomyces candidus, Magnusiomyces capitatus and Yarrowia lipolytica are reported as human pathogens fide Groenewald et al. (2014); de Hoog et al. (2020); Yarrowia lipolytica and Starmerella bombicola have been used in food and biotechnology industries fide Groenewald et al. (2014); Qazi et al. (2022)).
Type order: Dipodascales M. Groenew., Hittinger, Opulente & A. Rokas, Stud. Mycol. 105: 10 (2023).
Type family: Dipodascaceae Engl. & E. Gilg, Syllabus der Pflanzenfamilien: 59. (1924).
Type genus: Dipodascus Lagerh., Jahrb. Wiss. Bot. 24: 549. (1892).
Type species: Dipodascus albidus Lagerh., Jahrb. Wiss. Bot. 24: 549. (1892).
Other accepted species: Species Fungorum – search Dipodascomycetes.
Figure 1 – Microscopic features of taxa in Saccharomycotina. a Septate non-sporulating hyphae and pseudohyphae of Alloascoidea hylecoeti (Alloascoideaceae, Alloascoideales, Alloascoideomycetes). b-d Alloascoidea africana (Alloascoideaceae, Alloascoideales, Alloascoideomycetes) asci with ascospores and released ascospores (indicated with arrows). e,f Dipodascus albidus (Dipodascaceae, Dipodascales, Dipodascomycetes). e. Ascospores within hyphae and released ascospores. f Hyphae, arthroconidia and ascospores (indicated by arrow). g Lipomyces starkeyi (Lipomycetaceae, Lipomycetales, Lipomycetes) conjugation between a cell and its bud, ascus with ellipsoidal ascospores (indicated by arrows). h-j Pichia membranifaciens (Pichiaceae, Pichiales, Pichiomycetes) budding cells and asci with hat-shaped ascospores (indicated by arrows). k Pachysolen tannophilus (Pachysolenaceae, Alaninales, Pichiomycetes) budding cells, ascus with ascospores and liberated ascospores (indicated by arrow). l,m Metschnikowia bicuspidata (Metschnikowiaceae, Serinales, Pichiomycetes). (l) M. bucuspidata var. californica budding cells and needle-shaped ascospores. (m) M. bucuspidata var. chathamia budding cells and needle-shaped ascospores. n Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Saccharomycetaceae, Saccharomycetales, Saccharomycetes) budding cells and unconjugated, persistent ascus with globose ascospores (indicated by arrow). o, p Phaffomyces opuntiae (Phaffomycetaceae, Phaffomycetales, Saccharomycetes). (o) Budding cells and asci with hat-shaped ascospores (indicated by arrows). (p) Budding cells in short chains and asci with hat-shaped ascospores (indicated by arrows). q Saccharomycodes ludwigii (Saccharomycodaceae, Saccharomycodales, Saccharomycetes) bipolar cell division of budding cells and asci with spherical ascospores (indicated by arrows). r-t Ascoidea rubescens (Ascoideaceae, Ascoideales, Saccharomycetes). (r) Asexual cells and cluster of ascospores (indicated by arrow) (s) Asexual cells and septate hyphae, (t) Ascus with spores in different states of nascendi. u Sporopachydermia lactativora (Sporopachydermiaceae, Sporopachydermiales, Sporopachydermiomycetes) budding cells. v Trigonopsis variabilis (Trigonopsidaceae, Trigonopsidales, Trigonopsidomycetes). Budding cells with ellipsoidal and triangular morphology. Triangular cells produce ellipsoidal and triangular buds. Scale bar: a = 5μm, b-q, u,v = 10μm, r-t =30μm.
References
de Hoog GS, Smith MTh. 2004 – Ribosomal gene phylogeny and species delimitation in Geotrichum and its teleomorphs. Stud Mycol 50:489–515.
Entry by
Nalin N. Wijayawardene, Center for Yunnan Plateau Biological Resources Protection and Utilization, College of Biological Resource and Food Engineering, Qujing Normal University, Qujing, Yunnan 655011, P.R. China, Tropical Microbiology Research Foundation, 96/N/10, Meemanagoda Road, 10230 Pannipitiya, Sri Lanka, Department of Bioprocess Technology, Faculty of Technology, Rajarata University, Sri Lanka
Published online 25 September 2026