Disentangling identity of species of the genus Taphrina parasitizing herbaceous Rosaceae, with proposal of Taphrina gei-montani sp. nov.

Abstract

Five strains (CCY 058-007-001 T , CCY 058-007-002, CCY 058-007-003, CCY 058-007-004 and CCY 058-007-005) of a novel parasitic yeast belonging to the genus Taphrina were isolated from leaf tissues of Geum montanum L. (Rosaceae), collected from the Vysok e Tatry Mountains, Slovakia. Genetic analyses revealed that these isolates differ by 15 unique substitutions in the ITS region and by six substitutions in the rns gene from all other species of the genus Taphrina analysed hitherto. The novel strains are also distinguished from all other species of the genus Taphrina by their morphology, biochemical properties and ecology. These strains represent a novel species, for which the name Taphrina gei-montani sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is CCY 058-007-001 T (=CBS 14159=BU001). The MycoBank number is MB815677. The present study also demonstrates that two distinct species of the genus Taphrina parasitize the herbaceous Rosaceae: Taphrina gei-montani sp. nov. on Geum montanum and Taphrina tormentillae on Potentilla species.