Comminutispora
Comminutispora A.W. Ramaley, Mycologia 88(1): 132 (1996).
Index Fungorum number: IF 27576; Facesoffungi number: FoF 11099, 1 morphological species (Species Fungorum 2022), 1 species with molecular data.
Saprobic on dead leaves of Asparagaceae. Sexual morph: Ascostromata apothecial and elongate hysterothecium, scattered to loosely, immersed, dark brown to black, rather dull, carbonaceous, thick-walled, composed of textura angularis, opening by a sunken longitudinal slit. Asci 8-spored, bitunicate, fissitunicate, saccate, clavate or cylindrical, with a long pedicel, apically rounded, apex wall thick, with a large ocular chamber. Ascospores 2-seriateand overlapping in ascus, obovoid, ellipsoid to fusoid, with broadly to narrowly rounded ends, 0-3 septate when immature, transversely 1–5-septate and many longitudinal septate with ultimately forming tiny secondary ascospores when mature, roughened, with thin gelatinous coat. Asexual morph: Colonies growing on MA (malt agar), flat to slightly effuse, radiating, edge fimbriate, hyphae generally dark brown in surface view, outward hyphae pale brownish to hyaline, darkened interior, slightly raised hairy, partly superficial and immersed. The small conidiogenous cells differentiated from vegetative hyphae developing endoconidia of dictyochlamydospores, elongation or long chains, variable shape, with transverse and longitudinal septation, dark brown constricted at the septa, smooth or slightly verrucose (adapted from Monkai et al. 2013).
Type species: Comminutispora agavacearum A.W. Ramaley
Notes: Comminutispora is characterised by apothecial and elongate hysterothecium, fissitunicate, saccate, clavate or cylindrical asci and obovoid, ellipsoid to fusoid ascospores. The asexual morph is characterised by dark brown hyphae, dictyochlamydospores which are smooth or slightly verrucose. Ramaley (1996) treated Comminutispora in Dothideales sensu Lindau 1897. Hambleton et al. (2003) and Schoch et al. (2009) carried out phylogenetic analysis of SSU and LSU genes and showed that C. agavacearum clustered in Capnodiales and is not related to Planistromellaceae. In the phylogenetic analysis of Crous et al. (2009a) based on LSU sequence data, C. agavacearum clustered in family incertae sedis. Crous et al. (2009a) considered Comminutispora as an ancestral assemblage of taxa in the Capnodiales. Lumbsch and Huhndorf (2010) listed Comminutispora as a member of Planistromellaceae. Abdollahzadeh et al. (2020) accommodated Comminutispora in its own family and order Comminutisporaceae (Comminutisporales) based on morphology and phylogenetic analyses. Comminutispora is the distinct and type genus of Comminutisporaceae. Molecular markers available for Comminutispora are ITS, LSU, RPB2 and TEF-1.
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