Fungalpedia – Note 2300, Shiraia
Shiraia Henn.
Citation when using this data: Hongsanan S et al. 2020 – Fungalpedia, Ascomycota.
Index Fungorum, Facesoffungi, MycoBank, GenBank, Fig. 1
Classification: Shiraiaceae, Pleosporales, Pleosporomycetidae, Dothideomycetes, Pezizomycotina, Ascomycota, Fungi
This genus is distributed in China, Japan and Korea and prefers to live on bamboo (Liu et al. 2013, Farr & Rossman 2019). The genus is economically important as a Chinese traditional medicine (Hyde et al. 2013, Liu et al. 2013). Shiraia is characterized by superficial, pinkish, fleshy, multi-loculate ascostromata forming near ends of host branches or near petiole bases, 6-spored, bitunicate, fissitunicate, cylindrical asci with a long pedicel and a distinct ocular chamber, and hyaline to light brown, fusiform, muriform, symmetrical ascospores for its sexual morph. Asexual morph is coelomycetous and is characterized by holoblastic conidiogenous cells bearing asymmetrical, hyaline to light brown, fusiform, muriform conidia with acute basal, obtuse apex, or both obtuse ends (Hyde et al. 2013, Liu et al. 2013).
Type species: Shiraia bambusicola Henn.
Other accepted species: Species Fungorum – search Shiraia.
Figure 1 – Sexual morph of Shiraia bambusicola (MFLU 12-2041, epitype). a Ascostroma with yellow ascospore mass. b, c Cross section of ascostroma. d Vertical section of ascoma. e Wall of ascoma. f Pseudoparaphyses. g Pseudoparaphyses stained in cotton blue. h, i Asci. j, k Ascospores. l, m Ascospores stained in cotton blue. Scale bars: d = 300 µm, e–g = 50 µm, h, i = 100 µm, j–m = 30 µm.
References
Farr DF, Rossman AY. 2019 – Fungal Databases, U.S. National Fungus Collections, ARS, USDA. Retrieved May 30, 2019, from https://nt.ars-grin.gov/fungaldatabases/
Entry by
Sinang Hongsanan, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory for Plant Epigenetics, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Microbial Genetic Engineering, College of Life Science and Oceanography, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, People’s Republic of China, Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand, Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Faculty of Agriculture, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50002, Thailand
Published online 17 April 2026