Ascominuta
Ascominuta Ranghoo & K.D. Hyde, Mycoscience 41(1): 1 (2000).
Index Fungorum number: IF 28449; Facesoffungi number: FoF 12132, 1 morphological species (Species Fungorum 2022), 1 species with molecular data.
Saprobic on host. Sexual morph: Ascomata superficial to partly immersed in the host substrate, globose, dark brown to black, solitary or aggregated, ostiole periphysate. Peridium composed of 3-5 layers of hyaline compressed cells, the outer layer of dark brown textura angularis. Pseudoparaphyses comprising short chains of globose cells, often breaking up into individual cells, constricted at the septa. Asci 4- spored, globose, pedicellate, bitunicate, lacking an apical apparatus. Ascospores biseriate, broadly fusiform, somewhat curved, uniseptate, constricted at the septum, hyaline, smooth-walled, with an irregular mucilaginous sheath. Asexual morph: Unknown (adapted from Ranghoo & Hyde 2000).
Type species: Ascominuta lignicola Ranghoo & K.D. Hyde
Notes: Ascominuta is characterised by superficial to partly immersed ascomata, globose, pedicellate, bitunicate asci and broadly fusiform, somewhat curved, uniseptate ascospores. Ascominuta resembles Massarina in having ascospores surrounded by a mucilaginous sheath but differs in having globose asci and few pseudoparaphyses comprising short chains of globose cells while Massarina has narrowly to broadly clavate asci (Aptroot 1998). Ascominuta also resembles Wettsteinina in havinguniseptate ascospores, surrounded by a mucilaginous sheath but differs in that the latter has globose to broadly fusiform asci with 8 (or 16) ascospores (Shoemaker & Babcock 1987). Ascominuta has sparse pseudoparaphyses comprising short chains of globose cells while pseudoparaphyses in Wettsteinina are numerous and filiform. Ascominuta is also similar to Mycosphaerella in having small globose ascomata and two-celled ascospores but differs in its 4-spored globose asci while Mycosphaerella has 8-spored and clavate to obclavate asci (Hyde & Aptroot 1998, Ranghoo & Hyde 2000). Ranghoo and Hyde (2000) provided a synopsis of the morphological differences between Ascominuta, Massarina, Mycosphaerella and Wettsteinina. Molecular data is lacking for Ascominuta. Ascominuta is currently placed in Dothideomycetes genera incertae sedis. Fresh collections with DNA sequence data are needed to clarify the taxonomic placement of Ascominuta. Only LSU sequence data is available for Ascominuta.
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