Multigene Phylogeny and Morphology of Ophiocordyceps alboperitheciata sp. nov., A New Entomopathogenic Fungus Attacking Lepidopteran Larva from Yunnan, China

Qi Fan; Yuan-Bing Wang; Guo-Dong Zhang; De-Xiang Tang; Hong Yu

doi:10.1080/12298093.2021.1903130

Multigene Phylogeny and Morphology of Ophiocordyceps alboperitheciata sp. nov., A New Entomopathogenic Fungus Attacking Lepidopteran Larva from Yunnan, China

Mycobiology. 2021 Apr 21;49(2):133-141. doi: 10.1080/12298093.2021.1903130. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Qi Fan^{1

2}, Yuan-Bing Wang^{1

2}, Guo-Dong Zhang², De-Xiang Tang^{1

2}, Hong Yu^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Yunnan Herbal Laboratory, School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, China.
² The International Joint Research Center for Sustainable Utilization of Cordyceps Bioresources in China and Southeast Asia, Yunnan University, Kunming, China.

Abstract

A new fungus, Ophiocordyceps alboperitheciata, parasitic on the larva of Noctuidae (Lepidoptera) was identified from a survey of entomopathogenic fungi in Kunming Wild Duck Forest Park, Yunnan Province, China. It can be primarily distinguished from relatives by its longer fertile parts, sterile tips, superficial perithecia, narrower asci, and smaller septa of ascospores. As revealed from phylogenetic analyses inferred from nrSSU, nrLSU, tef-1α, rpb1, and rpb2 sequence data, O. alboperitheciata belongs to the Hirsutella citriformis clade in the genus Ophiocordyceps of Ophiocordycipitaceae, and forms a separated clade from other related species. The uniqueness of the taxon is significantly evidenced by both molecular phylogeny and morphology. Furthermore, the interspecific relationships in the H. citriformis clade are discussed.

Keywords: Hirsutella; New species; Ophiocordyceps; phylogenetic analyses.

Grants and funding

This work was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [No. 31760011 and 31870017], and the Department of Science and Technology of Yunnan Province [No. 2018FY001(-006)].