Determination of the Main Nucleosides and Nucleobases in Natural and Cultured Ophiocordyceps xuefengensis.

Ophiocordyceps xuefengensis, a recently described species of Ophiocordycepsthat is associated with the larvae of Phassusnodus (Hepialidae) in the living root or trunk of the medicinal plant Clerodendrumcyrtophyllum, isthe largest known Cordycepsspecies and is recognized as a desirable alternative for natural Ophiocordycepssinensis. This study investigated the main nucleosides and nucleobases in natural and cultured Ophiocordycepsxuefengensis. The contents of the nucleosides and nucleobases in the natural and cultured samples were determined by reverse phase HPLC. The highest concentration of adenosine was found in the natural fruit body and the cultured stroma, with almost no adenosine in the cadaver of Phassusnodus. The contents of adenine, guanosine, uridine and uracil in the cultured mycelium were significantly higher than those in the natural sample. Inosine was only detected in the natural samples. Thymidine and 2-deoxyadenosine were only found in the cadaver of Phassusnodus. Cordycepin was not detected in the five samples examined. These results suggested that the cultured mycelium and cultured stroma of Ophiocordycepsxuefengensis might be a promising substitute for natural O. xuefengensis.

A contribution to the knowledge of the genus Infundibulicybe (Tricholomatineae, Agaricales) in China: Two new species and five redescribed taxa.

In China, species of the genus Infundibulicybe are often confused with other taxa and misdetermined. Here we describe two newly discovered species, I. bispora and I. ellipsospora, and redescribe five known taxa of this genus present in China. These identifications are supported by both morphological and DNA-based phylogenetic evidence. Additionally, a key to all known species of Infundibulicybe is provided.

Three coralloid species of the genus Trechispora (Trechisporales, Basidiomycota) in China: two newly discovered taxa and one reported for the first time.

Two new species of Trechispora indigenous to southern China, T.laxa and T.tongdaoensis, are described and illustrated, and the first record of T.khokpasiensis in China is reported. Molecular phylogenetic analyses of the concatenated nuclear rDNA ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 and nuclear large subunit sequences supported the inclusion of the three species within the Trechispora clade, together with species formerly classified in Scytinopogon. The new species are similar in micromorphology to species of Trechispora (as traditionally circumscribed) but are distinguished by having coralloid basidiomata. A key to the known coralloid Trechispora species in China is provided.

A new clitocyboid genus Spodocybe and a new subfamily Cuphophylloideae in the family Hygrophoraceae (Agaricales).

Phylogenetically, the genera Cuphophyllus, Ampulloclitocybe and Cantharocybe are treated as basal in the family Hygrophoraceae, despite weak support. However, the exact phylogenetic positions of the three genera have remained unresolved, and taxa related to these genera are poorly known. In this study, a new clitocyboid genus Spodocybe was proposed based on multigenic phylogenetic inference datasets and morphological evidence. The analyses of ITS as well as two combined datasets ITS-nrLSU-rpb2 and ITS-nrLSU-rpb1-rpb2-tef1-α-atp6 supported that (1) Spodocybe formed a well-supported monophyletic clade; and (2) sisters Spodocybe and Ampulloclitocybe, along with Cantharocybe and Cuphophyllus also formed a monophyletic lineage, as sister to the rest of the Hygrophoraceae. Meanwhile, two new species, namely S. rugosiceps and S. bispora, from southwestern China, were documented and illustrated. These results support the new proposed genus Spodocybe, and that Spodocybe, Ampulloclitocybe, Cantharocybe and Cuphophyllus should be retained in the Hygrophoraceae as a new subfamily Cuphophylloideae.

Cloning and analysis of Ophiocordyceps xuefengensis mating type (MAT) loci.

The entomopathogenic fungus Ophiocordyceps xuefengensis, a recently described species and identified as the sister taxon of Ophiocordyceps sinensis, is a desirable alternative to O. sinensis. The mating systems of fungi play a vitally important role in the regulation of sexual reproduction and evolution, but the mating type loci of O. xuefengensis were completely unknown. In this study, the mating systems of O. xuefengensis were analyzed. The conserved α-box region of the MAT1-1-1 and HMG-box of MAT1-2-1 were successfully obtained by PCR amplification. The distribution of both mating types in different tissues of wild and cultivated O. xuefengensis growth was detected and analyzed. The results showed that the asci always harbored both mating types, whereas the sclerotium, the stipe and each isolated strain of wild O. xuefengensis always had only one idiomorph, either MAT1-1 or MAT1-2, which confirmed that O. xuefengensis is heterothallic. The MAT1-1 locus of O. xuefengensis harbors MAT1-1-1, MAT1-1-2 and MAT1-1-3, and MAT1-2 contains the MAT1-2-1 gene. Southern blot analysis showed the MAT-1-1-1 and MAT-1-2-1 genes were single-copy in O. xuefengensis. These results will help to understand its life cycle and support artificial cultivation of O. xuefengensis.