Three New Species of Hypoxylon (Xylariales, Ascomycota) on a Multigene Phylogeny from Medog in Southwest China

J Fungi (Basel). 2022 May 11;8(5):500. doi: 10.3390/jof8050500.

Abstract

During a survey of hypoxylaceous fungi in Medog county (Tibet Autonomous Region, China), three new species, including Hypoxylon damuense, Hypoxylon medogense, and Hypoxylon zangii, were described and illustrated based on morphological and multi-gene phylogenetic analyses. Hypoxylon damuense is characterized by its yellow-brown stromatal granules, light-brown to brown ascospores, and frequently indehiscent perispore. Hypoxylon medogense is morphologically and phylogenetically related to H. erythrostroma but differs in having larger ascospores with straight spore-length germ slit and conspicuously coil-like perispore ornamentation. Hypoxylon zangii shows morphological similarities to H. texense but differs in having Amber (47), Fulvous (43) and Sienna (8) KOH-extractable pigments and larger ascospores with straight spore-length germ slit. The multi-gene phylogenetic analyses inferred from the datasets of ITS-RPB2-LSU-TUB2 supported the three new taxa as separate lineages within Hypoxylon. A key to all known Hypoxylon species from China and related species worldwide is provided.

Keywords: Ascomycota; Hypoxylon; Xylariales; multigene phylogeny; taxonomy; wood-decomposing fungi.