A new species, Scopulariopsis gossypii, was found to be present in the vascular bundles of cotton plants (Gossypium hirsutum) infected by Verticillium dahliae which is an economically important pathogen in Hangzhou, China. The fungus was only present in the diseased plants, but it never became isolated from the healthy plants. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the fungus was present in parenchyma cells enclosing vessels in dark brown vascular tissues of stems, and produced asexual conidia within the tissues. Phylogenetic analysis of combined nuclear ribosomal D1/D2 region of the 28S rDNA as well as translation elongation factor 1-alpha (TEF1) and beta-tubulin (TUB) gene showed that S. gossypii represents an undescribed species of Scopulariopsis, Microascaceae. In this study, characteristics of sexual and asexual stages of the fungus were described, illustrated and compared with similar taxa. In addition, the molecular and morphological analyses indicated that S. gossypii was a distinct species of Scopulariopsis. The pathogenicity tests proved by inoculation of wounded roots confirmed that S. gossypii was an opportunistic pathogen causing leaf interveinal chlorosis and vascular browning of cotton plants. However S. gossypii did not infect host with undamaged roots. Moreover, coinoculation with S. gossypii and V. dahliae significantly increased disease severity.
Keywords: Fungus; Microascales; Multigene phylogeny; Systematics; Taxonomy.
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