Journal of Fungi (Aug 2022)

Additions to the Inventory of the Genus <i>Alternaria</i> Section <i>Alternaria</i> (<i>Pleosporaceae</i>, <i>Pleosporales</i>) in Italy

  • Junfu Li,
  • Rungtiwa Phookamsak,
  • Hongbo Jiang,
  • Darbhe Jayarama Bhat,
  • Erio Camporesi,
  • Saisamorn Lumyong,
  • Jaturong Kumla,
  • Sinang Hongsanan,
  • Peter E. Mortimer,
  • Jianchu Xu,
  • Nakarin Suwannarach

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/jof8090898
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8, no. 9
p. 898

Abstract

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The genus Alternaria is comprised of well-known plant pathogens causing various important diseases in plants, as well as being common allergens in animals and humans. Species of Alternaria can be found as saprobes associated with various dead plant materials. This research aims to enhance the taxonomy of saprobic species in the genus Alternaria found on grasses and herbaceous plants from Italy, based on multi-locus phylogenetic analyses of a concatenated ITS, LSU, SSU, tef1-α, rpb2, gapdh and Alt-a1 DNA sequence dataset combined with morphological characteristics. Multi-locus phylogenetic analyses demonstrated six novel species belonging to the genus Alternaria sect. Alternaria as: A. muriformispora sp. nov., A. obpyriconidia sp. nov., A. ovoidea sp. nov., A. pseudoinfectoria sp. nov., A. rostroconidia sp. nov. and A. torilis sp. nov. Detailed morphological descriptions, illustrations and an updated phylogenetic relationship of taxa in the genus Alternaria sect. Alternaria are provided herein.

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