Placoasterella
Placoasterella Sacc. ex Theiss. & Syd., Annls mycol. 13(3/4): 236 (1915).
Index Fungorum number: IF 4121; Facesoffungi number: FoF 08117, 4 morphological species (Species Fungorum 2022), no molecular data available.
Pathogenic on upper surface of leaves, forming blackened circles or irregular areas. Superficial hyphae not observed. Sexual morph: Ascostromata superficial, or slightly erumpent on host, penetrating cells at host stomata, scattered or gregarious, carbonaceous, comprising thick-walled, dark brown to black-walled cells of textura angularis, multi-loculate. Locules erumpent, opening with a pore at the centre. Hamathecium lacking pseudoparaphyses. Asci 8-spored, bitunicate, fissitunicate, ovoid, pedicel absent or sometimes present but very short and rounded, apically rounded with a very thick opaque region, ocular chamber absent. Ascospores overlapping bi-seriate or tri-seriate, ellipsoid to fusoid, comprising 2-layers, uniseptate at the centre, with constricted at septum, upper cell slightly broader than the lower cell, hyaline to pale brown, smooth-walled, or slightly verruculose, with a sheath. Asexual morph: Unknown (adapted from Hongsanan et al. 2014).
Type species: Placoasterella schweinfurthii (Henn.) Theiss. & Syd.
Notes: Placoasterella is characterised by superficial, or slightly erumpent ascostromata, erumpent locules opening with a pore at the centre, fissitunicate, ovoid asci with or without a pedicel and ellipsoid to fusoid uniseptate ascospore. Müller and Arx (1962) illustrated Placoasterella baileyi and referred the genus to Asterinaceae. Hongsanan et al. (2014) re-examined the isotype specimen of P. schweinfurthii (K 164019) and placed Placoasterella in Parmulariaceae based on morphology. Molecular data is lacking. Fresh collections with DNA sequence data are needed to confirm the taxonomic placement of Placoasterella.
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