Stigmatodiscus
Stigmatodiscus Voglmayr & Jaklitsch, in Voglmayr et al., Fungal Diversity 80: 278 (2016).
= Asterodiscus Voglmayr, Gardiennet & Jaklitsch, Fungal Diversity 80: 275 (2016).
Index Fungorum number: IF 815327; Facesoffungi number: FoF 01654, 6 morphological species (Species Fungorum 2022), 6 species with molecular data.
Saprobic on host. Sexual morph: Ascomata apothecioid, embedded in cortex of dead twigs, initially covered by bark, later becoming exposed through irregular cracks, eventually becoming fully exposed with age, dark brown to black, without distinct margin. Hamathecium of hyaline, septate paraphyses, unbranched or rarely branched and anastomosing above, with distinctly swollen free apical ends, embedded in a rubber-like gel matrix and covered by an amorphous matrix forming an epithecium. Hymenial gel I-. Asci sequentially produced over a long time, bitunicate, fissitunicate, I-, variable in shape from broadly fusoid to saccate, with thin ecto- and thick endotunica, apically with wide ocular chamber, without ring. Ascospores large, asymmetric, distal part distinctly larger than the proximal part, proximal end rounded, distal end rounded to subacute, brown, 1-euseptate in early stages, developing 2 additional distosepta and becoming 3- septate, distinctly constricted at the septa, secondary septa with large pores; wall thick, punctate to verruculose, surrounded by gel coating widely expanding in water after spore discharge; lumina ellipsoid in mid cells, ellipsoid to conoid in end cells. Asexual morph: Conidiomata on natural substrates immersed, peridermal, pycnidial, thin-walled, on 2 % MEA superficial, acervular, conidiogenous cells phialidic, conidia falcate (adapted from Voglmayr et al. 2016).
Type species: Stigmatodiscus enigmaticus Voglmayr & Jaklitsch.
Notes: Stigmatodiscus is characterised by apothecioid ascomata, broadly fusoid to saccate asci and large, asymmetric, brown 1-euseptate to 3-septate ascospores. The asexual morph is characterised by peridermal, pycnidial, thin-walled conidiomata, phialidic conidiogenous cells and falcate conidia. Voglmayr et al. (2016) provided multigene phylogeny of Stigmatodiscus based on SSU, LSU, RPB2 and TEF1. Voglmayr et al. (2016) reported that Stigmatodiscus resembles Asterodiscus but can be differentiated based on the ascospore shape and coloration as Stigmatodiscus has dark brown, asymmetric ascospores with the distal part markedly larger than the proximal part while Asterodiscus has hyaline only faintly asymmetric ascospores which turn brownish after expulsion. Voglmayr et al. (2016) also compared Stigmatodiscus with Asterodiscus based on ecology with the former occuring on Carpinus orientalis, Acer monspessulanum and Tamarix spp. while Asterodiscus being commonly found mainly on Tamarix spp. However, recently Voglmayr and Amengual (2018) described three new species (S. labiatus, S. oculatus, and S. pinicola) from Mallorca (Spain) and synonymized Asterodiscus with Stigmatodiscus based on morphology and phylogenetic analyses of SSU, ITS, LSU, RPB2, TEF1 and BTUB. Stigmatodiscus is accommodated in its own family Stigmatodiscaceae. Stigmatodiscus is morphologically and phylogenetically a distinct and type genus of Stigmatodiscaceae. Molecular markers available for Stigmatodiscus are ITS, LSU, SSU, BTUB, RPB2 and TEF-1.
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