Diversity and novel lineages of black yeasts in Chaetothyriales from freshwater sediments in Spain.

Black yeasts comprise a group of Ascomycota of the order Chaetothyriales with highly variable morphology, a great diversity of ecological niches and life cycles. Despite the ubiquity of these fungi, their diversity in freshwater sediments is still poorly understood. During a survey of culturable Ascomycota from river and stream sediments in various sampling sites in Spain, we obtained 47 isolates of black yeasts by using potato dextrose agar supplemented with cycloheximide. A preliminary morphological study and sequence analyses of the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS) and the large subunit (LSU) of the nuclear rDNA revealed that most of the isolates belonged to the family Herpotrichiellaceae. We have confidently identified 30 isolates representing the following species: Capronia pulcherrima, Cladophialophora emmonsii, Exophiala equina, Exophiala pisciphila, Exophiala radicis, and Phialophora americana. However, we encountered difficulty in assigning 17 cultures to any known species within Chaetothyriales. Combining phenotypic and multi-locus phylogenetic analyses based on the ITS, LSU, ß-tubulin (tub2) and translation elongation factor 1-α (tef1-α) gene markers, we propose the new genus Aciculomyces in the Herpotrichiellaceae to accommodate the novel species Aciculomyces restrictus. Other novel species in this family include Cladophialophora denticulata, Cladophialophora heterospora, Cladophialophora irregularis, Exophiala candelabrata, Exophiala dehoogii, Exophiala ramosa, Exophiala verticillata and Phialophora submersa. The new species Cyphellophora spiralis, closely related to Cyphellophora suttonii, is described, and the phylogeny of the genus Anthopsis in the family Cyphellophoraceae is discussed. By utilizing these four markers, we were able to strengthen the phylogenetic resolution and provide more robust taxonomic assessments within the studied group. Our findings indicate that freshwater sediments may serve as a reservoir for intriguing black yeasts, which warrant further investigation to address gaps in phylogenetic relationships, particularly within Herpotrichiellaceae. Citation: Torres-Garcia D, García D, Réblová M, et al. 2023. Diversity and novel lineages of black yeasts in Chaetothyriales from freshwater sediments in Spain. Persoonia 51: 194-228. doi: 10.3767/persoonia.2023.51.05.

Fungal Planet description sheets: 1550-1613.

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Argentina, Neocamarosporium halophilum in leaf spots of Atriplex undulata. Australia, Aschersonia merianiae on scale insect (Coccoidea), Curvularia huamulaniae isolated from air, Hevansia mainiae on dead spider, Ophiocordyceps poecilometigena on Poecilometis sp. Bolivia, Lecanora menthoides on sandstone, in open semi-desert montane areas, Sticta monlueckiorum corticolous in a forest, Trichonectria epimegalosporae on apothecia of corticolous Megalospora sulphurata var. sulphurata, Trichonectria puncteliae on the thallus of Punctelia borreri. Brazil, Catenomargarita pseudocercosporicola (incl. Catenomargarita gen. nov.) hyperparasitic on Pseudocercospora fijiensis on leaves of Musa acuminata, Tulasnella restingae on protocorms and roots of Epidendrum fulgens. Bulgaria, Anthracoidea umbrosae on Carex spp. Croatia, Hymenoscyphus radicis from surface-sterilised, asymptomatic roots of Microthlaspi erraticum, Orbilia multiserpentina on wood of decorticated branches of Quercus pubescens. France, Calosporella punctatispora on dead corticated twigs of Aceropalus. French West Indies (Martinique), Eutypella lechatii on dead corticated palm stem. Germany, Arrhenia alcalinophila on loamy soil. Iceland, Cistella blauvikensis on dead grass (Poaceae). India, Fulvifomes maritimus on living Peltophorum pterocarpum, Fulvifomes natarajanii on dead wood of Prosopis juliflora, Fulvifomes subazonatus on trunk of Azadirachta indica, Macrolepiota bharadwajii on moist soil near the forest, Narcissea delicata on decaying elephant dung, Paramyrothecium indicum on living leaves of Hibiscus hispidissimus, Trichoglossum syamviswanathii on moist soil near the base of a bamboo plantation. Iran, Vacuiphoma astragalicola from stem canker of Astragalus sarcocolla. Malaysia, Neoeriomycopsis fissistigmae (incl. Neoeriomycopsidaceae fam. nov.) on leaf spots on flower Fissistigma sp. Namibia, Exophiala lichenicola lichenicolous on Acarospora cf. luederitzensis. Netherlands, Entoloma occultatum on soil, Extremus caricis on dead leaves of Carex sp., Inocybe pseudomytiliodora on loamy soil. Norway, Inocybe guldeniae on calcareous soil, Inocybe rupestroides on gravelly soil. Pakistan, Hymenagaricus brunneodiscus on soil. Philippines, Ophiocordyceps philippinensis parasitic on Asilus sp. Poland, Hawksworthiomyces ciconiae isolated from Ciconia ciconia nest, Plectosphaerella vigrensis from leaf spots on Impatiens noli-tangere, Xenoramularia epitaxicola from sooty mould community on Taxus baccata. Portugal, Inocybe dagamae on clay soil. Saudi Arabia, Diaporthe jazanensis on branches of Coffea arabica. South Africa, Alternaria moraeae on dead leaves of Moraea sp., Bonitomyces buffels-kloofinus (incl. Bonitomyces gen. nov.) on dead twigs of unknown tree, Constrictochalara koukolii on living leaves of Itea rhamnoides colonised by a Meliola sp., Cylindromonium lichenophilum on Parmelina tiliacea, Gamszarella buffelskloofina (incl. Gamszarella gen. nov.) on dead insect, Isthmosporiella africana (incl. Isthmosporiella gen. nov.) on dead twigs of unknown tree, Nothoeucasphaeria buffelskloofina (incl. Nothoeucasphaeria gen. nov.), on dead twigs of unknown tree, Nothomicrothyrium beaucarneae (incl. Nothomicrothyrium gen. nov.) on dead leaves of Beaucarnea stricta, Paramycosphaerella proteae on living leaves of Protea caffra, Querciphoma foliicola on leaf litter, Rachicladosporium conostomii on dead twigs of Conostomium natalense var. glabrum, Rhamphoriopsis synnematosa on dead twig of unknown tree, Waltergamsia mpumalanga on dead leaves of unknown tree. Spain, Amanita fulvogrisea on limestone soil, in mixed forest, Amanita herculis in open Quercus forest, Vuilleminia beltraniae on Cistus symphytifolius. Sweden, Pachyella pulchella on decaying wood on sand-silt riverbank. Thailand, Deniquelata cassiae on dead stem of Cassia fistula, Stomiopeltis thailandica on dead twigs of Magnolia champaca. Ukraine, Circinaria podoliana on natural limestone outcrops, Neonematogonum carpinicola (incl. Neonematogonum gen. nov.) on dead branches of Carpinus betulus. USA, Exophiala wilsonii water from cooling tower, Hygrophorus aesculeticola on soil in mixed forest, and Neocelosporium aereum from air in a house attic. Morphological and culture characteristics are supported by DNA barcodes. Citation: Crous PW, Costa MM, Kandemir H, et al. 2023. Fungal Planet description sheets: 1550-1613. Persoonia 51: 280-417. doi: 10.3767/persoonia.2023.51.08.

GK-1 peptide reduces tumor growth, decreases metastatic burden, and increases survival in a murine breast cancer model.

GK-1 is a parasite-derived peptide adjuvant of 18 amino acid-length that enhances T-cell function and increases survival in B16-F10 melanoma tumor-bearing mice. This study was designed to evaluate in vivo the antitumor efficacy of GK-1 on 4T1 mouse mammary carcinoma. BALB/c mice with palpable primary tumors were weekly intravenously injected three times with saline solution or three different concentrations (10, 50, or 100µg per mouse) of GK-1. GK-1 significantly increased lifespan (p<0.0001) and reduced the primary tumor weight (p=0.014) and volume (p<0.0001) with respect to control mice, with no statistically significant differences among GK-1 doses. At the primary tumor, we found increased necrotic areas associated with a reduction in tumor mass, as well as an increase in the antitumor cytokine IL-12. Especially encouraging is the ability of GK-1 to reduce the number of lung metastasis (p=0.006) disregarding the dose used. The participation of IL-6 in metastasis development and the decreased levels of CCL-2, CCL-3, TNF-α, CXCL-9, GM-CSF, and b-FGF found in lungs of GK-1-treated mice is discussed. Our study supports the effectiveness of GK-1 as an antineoplastic agent that merits further exploration in combination with other therapeutic approaches in future translational studies.