Neocucurbitaria unguis-hominis
Neocucurbitaria unguis-hominis (Punith. & M.P. English) Wanas., E.B.G. Jones & K.D. Hyde, in Wanasinghe, Phookamsak, Jeewon, Li, Hyde, Jones, Camporesi & Promputtha, Mycosphere 8(3): 412 (2017)
≡ Pyrenochaeta unguis-hominis Punith. & M.P. English, Trans. Br. mycol. Soc. 64(3): 539 (1975)
Index Fungorum number: IF 322137; Facesoffungi number: FoF xxx, Fig. 1
Description: see Punith and English (1975); Sutton (1980); Wanasinghe et al. (2017); Valenzuela-Lopez et al. (2018).
Material examined: see Punith and English (1975); Sutton (1980); Punith and English (1975); Wanasinghe et al. (2017); Valenzuela-Lopez et al. (2018).
Fig. 1. Neocucurbitaria unguis-hominis (CBS 112.79; redrawn from Valenzuela-Lopez et al. 2018) a. Conidiomata. b. Conidia. Scale bars: a, b = 10 μm
Importance and role
Importance of genus to ecosystem
Species of Neocucurbitaria are saprobic or parasitic on human skin. As saprobes, they play a role in nutrient recycling in the ecosystem. N. unguis-hominis is a rare human pathogen that causes infection in human skin and nail (Toh et al. 2016).
Industrial relevance and applications
There are currently no industrial applications of Neocucurbitaria.
Quarantine significance
No biocontrol agent has been reported from Neocucurbitaria. Further studies are needed.
Biochemical importance of the genus, chemical diversity or applications
The chemical diversity of Neocucurbitaria has not been investigated. Neocucurbitaria may produce important chemicals, enzymes, plantal and chemical antigens or phytotoxins. Further studies are needed.
Diversity of the genus
Neocucurbitaria comprises twenty-two species known on eleven plant families namely Cistaceae, Fabaceae, Fagaceae, Grossulariaceae, Juglandaceae, Leguminosae, Proteaceae, Rhamnaceae, Rosaceae, Salicaceae and Sapindaceae. Neocucurbitaria has been reported mainly from Austria, Canary Is., Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, Morocco, Sicilia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United States and Western Australia. Neocucurbitaria seems to be a diverse genus and many more species of Neocucurbitaria can be found in future studies.
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