Study on species diversity of Akanthomyces (Cordycipitaceae, Hypocreales) in the Jinyun Mountains, Chongqing, China.

Akanthomyces species have only been reported from Guizhou and Qinghai Province, with few reports from other regions in China. In this research, the species diversity of Akanthomyces in the Jinyun Mountains, Chongqing was investigated. Fourteen infected spider specimens were collected and two new species (A.bashanensis and A.beibeiensis) and a known species (A.tiankengensis) were established and described according to a multi-locus phylogenetic analysis and the morphological characteristics. Our results reveal abundant Akanthomyces specimens and three species were found at Jinyun Mountain. Due to its being an important kind of entomopathogenic fungi, further attention needs to be paid to the diversity of other entomopathogenic fungi in Chongqing, China.

Two new species of Samsoniella (Cordycipitaceae, Hypocreales) from the Mayao River Valley, Guizhou, China.

Samsoniella species have been often found in the forest habitat and rarely found in special karst eco-environments, such as Tiankeng, valleys and caves. In this research, eleven cordyceps specimens were collected from Mayao River Valley. A known species (S.haniana) and two new species (S.duyunensis and S.vallis) were established and described according to a multilocus phylogenetic analysis and morphological characteristics. Our results provide insight that the richness of Samsoniella species in karst eco-environments and further attention should be paid to entomopathogenic fungi in such habitats.

Phylogenetic, ecological and morphological characteristics reveal two new spider-associated genera in Clavicipitaceae.

Clavicipitaceous fungi are pathogenic to scale insects, white flies and other insect orders. However, a few species are spider-associated. Two new genera from China, Neoaraneomyces and Pseudometarhizium, are described based on phylogenetic, ecological and morphological characteristics. Two spider-associated species, Neoaraneomycesaraneicola, Pseudometarhiziumaraneogenum, and an insect-associated species Pseudometarhiziumlepidopterorum are included. The morphological characteristics of paecilomyces-like conidiogenous structures, present in many insect/spiders associated species make species-level identifications difficult. A phylogenetic analysis of the combined dataset (ITS, LSU, RPB2 and TEF), placed the two new genera in Clavicipitaceae. The new spider-associated species may be the result of convergent evolution to adapt to the ecological environment and may have undergone host jumping or altered their nutritional preferences.

Species Diversity of Cordyceps-Like Fungi in the Tiankeng Karst Region of China.

Tiankeng acts as a refugium for biodiversity amid a changing global climate, and a previous study has shown that some ancient (Alsophila spinulosa) and unique plants (cool-adapted plants) are present in Tiankeng. However, there are few reports on Ascomycota from the Tiankeng karst region. In this research, the species diversity of Cordyceps-like fungi in Monkey-Ear Tiankeng was investigated. Seven species in the genera Akanthomyces, Beauveria, Cordyceps, and Samsoniella were identified based on internal transcribed spacer sequences and morphological characteristics. Eight new species in the genera Akanthomyces, Cordyceps, and Samsoniella were established and described according to a multilocus phylogenetic analysis and morphological characteristics. Our results revealed that Cordyceps-like fungi were abundant in Monkey-Ear Tiankeng, providing new insights into the diversity of Ascomycota in this special eco-environment. IMPORTANCE Karst Tiankeng has a special eco-environment and acts as a refugium for biodiversity. However, there are few reports on Ascomycota from the Tiankeng karst region. In this research, seven known species and eight new species in the genera Akanthomyces, Beauveria, Cordyceps, and Samsoniella were reported. The results showed that Cordyceps-like fungi are abundant in Monkey-Ear Tiankeng. Interestingly, the month of the sampling was November, which is not an active period of growth and reproduction for Cordyceps-like fungi. These results revealed that unconventional time sampling should not be ignored, especially for a special eco-environment, and provided new insights into the diversity of Ascomycota in this special eco-environment.

Transient expression of organophosphorus hydrolase to enhance the degrading activity of tomato fruit on coumaphos.

We constructed an expression cassette of the organophosphorus pesticide degrading (opd) gene under the control of the E8 promoter. Then opd was transformed into tomato fruit using an agroinfiltration transient expression system. beta-Glucuronidase (GUS) staining, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), wavelength scanning, and fluorescent reaction were performed to examine the expression of the opd gene and the hydrolysis activity on coumaphos of organophosphorus hydrolase (OPH) in tomato fruit. The results show that the agroinfiltrated tomato fruit-expressed OPH had the maximum hydrolysis activity of about 11.59 U/mg total soluble protein. These results will allow us to focus on breeding transgenic plants that could not only enhance the degrading capability of fruit and but also hold no negative effects on pest control when spraying organophosphorus pesticides onto the seedlings in fields.

DNA methylation polymorphism in flue-cured tobacco and candidate markers for tobacco mosaic virus resistance.

DNA methylation plays an important role in the epigenetic regulation of gene expression during plant growth, development, and polyploidization. However, there is still no distinct evidence in tobacco regarding the distribution of the methylation pattern and whether it contributes to qualitative characteristics. We studied the levels and patterns of methylation polymorphism at CCGG sites in 48 accessions of allotetraploid flue-cured tobacco, Nicotiana tabacum, using a methylation-sensitive amplified polymorphism (MSAP) technique. The results showed that methylation existed at a high level among tobacco accessions, among which 49.3% sites were methylated and 69.9% allelic sites were polymorphic. A cluster analysis revealed distinct patterns of geography-specific groups. In addition, three polymorphic sites significantly related to tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) resistance were explored. This suggests that tobacco breeders should pay more attention to epigenetic traits.

[Influence of temperature on hydrolysis and acidogenesis of kitchen wastes in two-phase anaerobic digestion].

The experiment evaluated the solubilization rate and VFA production rate of kitchen wastes with controlled-temperature at 25 degrees C, 37 degrees C, 40 degrees C and 50 degrees C, and subsequently investigated the lactic acid production and constituents of individual organic acids at various temperature levels. Results show that the increase of temperature when below 37 degrees C may improve both hydrolysis and acidogenesis rates and acidogenesis rate decreases while hydrolysis rate increases above 37 degrees C. The maximum VFA concentration of 34.4 g x L(-1) was achieved at 37 degrees C and a higher hydrolysis rate of 82% was obtained at 50 degrees C. Formic and acetic acid were predominant VFA, while propionic and butyric acid took a relatively little part. And lactic acid concentration remained relatively high. Accroding to the experiment an optimum temperature to optimize both hydrolysis and acidification is 37 degrees C.