Species delineation in the tree pathogen genus Celoporthe (Cryphonectriaceae) in southern Africa.

The genus Celoporthe was first described when C. dispersa was discovered in South Africa associated with dieback and cankers on trees in the Myrtales. Four additional species were recently described from Eucalyptus and Syzygium cumini in China as well as S. aromaticum and Eucalyptus in Indonesia. Inoculation trials have shown that all Celoporthe species, including those that have not been found on Eucalyptus species in nature, are pathogenic to Eucalyptus and they are thus potentially threatening to commercial Eucalyptus forestry. New isolates, morphologically similar to Celoporthe, have been collected from S. legatti in South Africa and S. guineense in Zambia. Multigene phylogenetic analyses based on DNA sequences of the ITS region, TEF1α gene and two areas of the ß-tubulin gene revealed additional cryptic species in Celoporthe. Phylogenetic data were supported by morphological differences. These resulted in the description of two previously unknown species of Celoporthe, namely C. fontana and C. woodiana, for two of these cryptic groups, while the third group represented C. dispersa. These species all can readily infect Eucalyptus as well as several species of Syzygium, the latter of which are native to Africa.

New records of the Cryphonectriaceae from southern Africa including Latruncellus aurorae gen. sp. nov.

The Cryphonectriaceae accommodates some of the world's most important tree pathogens, including four genera known from native and introduced Myrtales in Africa. Surveys in the past 3 y in southern Africa have led to the discovery of cankers with fruiting structures resembling those of the Cryphonectriaceae on trees in the Myrtales in Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland and Zambia. These fungi were identified with morphological characteristics and DNA sequence data. For the first time we report Chrysoporthe austroafricana from Namibia and on Syzygium guineense and Holocryphia eucalypti in Swaziland on a Eucalyptus grandis clone. The host and geographic ranges of Celoporthe dispersa are expanded to include S. legatti in South Africa and S. guineense in Zambia. In addition a monotypic genus, Latruncellus aurorae gen. sp. nov., is described from Galpinia transvaalica (Lythraceae, Myrtales) in Swaziland. The present and other recent studies clearly emphasize the limited understanding of the diversity and distribution of fungi in the Cryphonectriaceae in Africa.

Bacterial and Fungal Dynamics During the Fermentation Process of Sesotho, a Traditional Beer of Southern Africa.

Sesotho is an indigenous cereal-based fermented drink traditionally produced in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho, Southern Africa. The present study sought to examine the microbial (bacterial and fungal) community composition of Sesotho at five fermentation stages in five different locations. Using culture-independent (Illumina sequencing) techniques it was found that the bacterial communities followed similar successional patterns during the fermentation processes, regardless of geographical location and recipe variation between breweries. The most abundant bacterial taxa belonged to the phyla Firmicutes (66.2% of the reads on average) and Proteobacteria (22.1%); the families Lactobacillaceae (54.9%), Enterobacteriaceae (14.4%) and Leoconostrocaceae (8.1%); and the genera Lactobacillus (54%), Leuconostoc (10.7%), Leptotrichia (8.5%), and Weissella (5.5%). Most fungal taxa were from the phyla Ascomycota (60.7%) and Mucoromycota (25.3%); the families Rhizopodaceae (25.3%), Nectriaceae (24.2%), Saccharomycetaceae (16%) and Aspergillaceae (6.7%); and the genera Rhizopus (25.3%), Saccharomyces (9.6%), and Aspergillus (2.5%). Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) such as Enterococcus, Pediococcus, Lactobacillus, Leuconostoc, and Wiesella; as well as yeasts belonging to the genus Saccharomyces, were dominant in all breweries during the production of Sesotho. Several pathogenic and food spoilage microorganisms (e.g., Escherichia, Shigella, Klebsiella, etc.) were also present, but the study demonstrated the safety potential of the Sesotho fermentation process, as these microbial groups decline throughout Sesotho production. The functional profiles of the different brewing steps showed that the process is dominated by chemoheterotrophic and fermentative metabolisms. This study reveals, for the first time, the complex microbial dynamics that occur during Sesotho production.