Two new endophytic species of Parafenestella (Pleosporales, Cucurbitariaceae) from Xizang, China, revealed by morphology and multi-locus phylogeny

2026/07/20 by 庞开圻, Yingying Wu, Yingmei Liang +1 · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions #Plant Pathogens and Fungal Diseases #Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity

paper · doi:10.3897/mycokeys.137.197730

openalex publication_date 2026/07/20 · openalex created_date 2026/07/21 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/25

Abstract

During a mycological survey of high-altitude forests in Xizang (Tibet), China, four endophytic fungal strains were isolated from the asymptomatic tissues of Cupressus gigantea and Rosa sericea . Based on morphological characteristics and multi-locus phylogenetic analyses of a five-gene dataset (ITS, LSU, tub2 , tef1 , and rpb2 ), these isolates are introduced as Parafenestella cupressicola sp. nov . and P. xizangensis sp. nov . ( Cucurbitariaceae , Pleosporales ). Phylogenetically, P. cupressicola forms a sister lineage to P. ulmi and P. ulmicola but differs in conidiogenous cell and conidia dimensions. Parafenestella xizangensis shares similar conidial morphology with P. salicis , but differs in molecular sequences. These findings expand the known host range and geographic distribution of Parafenestella and suggest that additional endophytic diversity remains to be discovered in alpine forest ecosystems.

Citations

• Fenestelloid clades of the <i>Cucurbitariaceae</i>
• A<i>Beauveria</i>phylogeny inferred from nuclear ITS and EF1-α sequences: evidence for cryptic diversification and links to<i>Cordyceps</i>teleomorphs
• Species diversity of <i>Cytospora</i> associated with forest canker diseases in Xizang (Tibet), China
• Culturable endophytic Sordariomycetes from <i>Rosa roxburghii</i>: New species and lifestyles
• Species of Diaporthe (Diaporthaceae, Diaporthales) associated with Alnus nepalensis leaf spot and branch canker diseases in Xizang, China
• Morphology and molecular phylogeny reveal new species of Sporocadus (Sporocadaceae, Amphisphaeriales) in Xizang, China
• Coelomycetous Dothideomycetes with emphasis on the families Cucurbitariaceae and Didymellaceae
• UFBoot2: Improving the Ultrafast Bootstrap Approximation
• MEGA7: Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis Version 7.0 for Bigger Datasets
• IQ-TREE: A Fast and Effective Stochastic Algorithm for Estimating Maximum-Likelihood Phylogenies
• MrBayes 3.2: Efficient Bayesian Phylogenetic Inference and Model Choice Across a Large Model Space
• Phylogenetic relationships among ascomycetes: evidence from an RNA polymerse II subunit
• Two Divergent Intragenomic rDNA ITS2 Types within a Monophyletic Lineage of the FungusFusariumAre Nonorthologous

Discussions

• 🍄 Two new fungal species - Parafenestella cupressicola and P. xizangensis - have been discovered inside Cypress and Rose trees in Xizang. 🌲 These findings have shown that the known range of Parafen [bsky, 4 points, 0 comments]

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