Asterotexis
Asterotexis Arx, Fungus, Wageningen 28: 6 (1958).
Index Fungorum number: IF 430; Faceoffungi number: FoF 06766, 2 morphological species (Species Fungorum, 2022), 1 species with molecular data.
Pathogenic on leaves, forming small blackened, circular areas. Presence of superficial hyphae not confirmed. Sexual morph: Thyriothecia superficial to erumpent on upper surface, clustered, circular or irregular, wall comprising pale brown cells of textura porrecta, branching at the margin, when viewed in squash mount showing a radial arrangement of cells, with fissure-like ostiole at the centre, not easily removed from host surface, with a poorly developed base, basal layer fusing with the host cells. Hamathecium septate, anastomosing pseudoparaphyses, embedded in a gelatinous matrix. Asci 8-spored, bitunicate, fissitunicate, oblong to cylindrical, with short and rounded pedicel or sometimes absent, with an ocular chamber. Ascospores overlapping 2–3-seriate, oblong to fusoid, 1-septate, sometimes 2- septate, constricted at the septum, upper cell broader than lower cell, hyaline, smooth-walled. Asexual morph: Unknown (adapted from Hongsanan et al. 2014).
Type species: Asterotexis cucurbitacearum (Rehm) Arx
Notes: Asterotexis is unique in that some cells of the scutellum form appressoria at the base, and penetrate the wall of the epidermal host cells (Guerrero et al. 2011). In their phylogenetic analysis, species of Asterotexis formed a separate clade sister to Inocyclus angularis (Incertae sedis clade) and were accommodated in its own family Asterotexaceae and order Asterotexiales (Guatimosim et al. 2015). Asterotexales was synonymized under Asterinales by Liu et al. (2017). Hongsanan et al. (2020) retained Asterotexaceae within Asterinales and noted that more sequence data are needed to clarify its phylogenetic placement. Only LSU sequence is available for Asterotexis.
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