Fungalpedia – Note 760, Rhytismataceae

 

Rhytismataceae Chevall.

Citation when using this data: Karimi O et al. 2025 (in prep.) – Fungalpedia, Ascomycota.

Index Fungorum, Facesoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank.

Classification: Rhytismatales, Leotiomycetidae, Leotiomycetes, Pezizomycotina, Ascomycota, Fungi 

Rhytismataceae species are saprobic or parasitic on plant material, with Rhytisma as the type genus (Wang et al. 2006, 2023). The family was established by Chevallier (1826) and placed in Rhytismatales by Hawksworth & Eriksson (1986). Sexual morph is characterized by apothecial long-stipitate, clypeate ascomata, opened via longitudinal split or radial fissures. Paraphyses are mostly present, filiform, curved, hyaline and sometimes with swollen apex. Asci are cylindric-clavate, mostly non-amyloid with 4–8 ascospores. Ascospores are hyaline, mostly unicellular, tapered base and variable in shape, including ovoid, ellipsoid, clavate, sub-cylindrical, fusoid or filiform, sometimes with gel cap at the apex (Wang et al. 2006, Ge et al. 2014, Tanney & Seifert 2017, Ekanayaka et al. 2019). Asexual morph is coelomycetous with sympodial proliferating holoblastic conidiogenous cells, bearing hyaline, unicellular, ellipsoid to fusoid, rod-shape conidia (Wang et al. 2006, Ge et al. 2014, Ekanayaka et al. 2019). The rpb2, tef-1α and act gene regions are effective barcodes for the phylogeny of Rhytismataceae. However, many taxa in this family lack sequences for these genes (Ekanayaka et al. 2019, Wang et al. 2023). Currently, there are 65 accepted genera in this family (Hyde et al. 2024). 

Type genus: Rhytisma Fr., K. svenska Vetensk-Akad. Handl., ser. 3 40: 104 (1819).

 

References

Chevallier FF. 1826 – Flore Générale des Environs de Paris 1, 1–674.

Ekanayaka AH, Hyde KD, Gentekaki E, McKenzie EHC, et al. 2019 – Preliminary classification of Leotiomycetes. Mycosphere 10, 310–489.

Ge ZW, Yang ZL, Pfister DH, Carbone M, et al. 2014 – Multigene molecular phylogeny and biogeographic diversification of the earth tongue fungi in the genera Cudonia and Spathularia (Rhytismatales, Ascomycota). PLoS ONE 9, e103457.

Hawksworth DL, Eriksson OE. 1986 – The names of accepted orders of Ascomycetes. Systema Ascomycetum 5, 175–184.

Hyde KD, Noorabadi MT, Thiyagaraja V, He MQ, et al. 2024 – The 2024 Outline of Fungi and fungus-like taxa. Mycosphere 15, 5146–6239. 

Tanney JB, Seifert KA. 2017 – Lophodermium resinosum sp. nov. from red pine (Pinus resinosa) in Eastern Canada. Botany 95, 773–784.

Wang QT, Guo MJ, Lv T, Zhou H, et al. 2023 – Phylogeny and taxonomy of Rhytisma-like species worldwide. Fungal Diversity 120(1), 77–119.

Wang Z, Binder M, Schoch CL, Johnston PR, et al. 2006 – Evolution of helotialean fungi (Leotiomycetes, Pezizomycotina): a nuclear rDNA phylogeny. Molecular Phylogenetic and Evolution 41, 295–312.

 

Entry by

Omid Karimi, State Key Laboratory of Discovery and Utilization of Functional Components in Traditional Chinese Medicine & School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, Guian New District, Guizhou 550004, China, Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand, School of Science, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand

 

Published online 28 July 2025

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