Endophytic Pestalotiopsis species associated with Rhododendron in Cangshan Mountain, Yunnan Province, China

Abstract

Rhododendron is an essential ornamental plant that is abundant in Yunnan province. In Cangshan Mountain, Yunnan, China, 61 species of Rhododendron have been reported. Endophytic fungi are internal plant tissue inhabitants that do not harm the host. It has emerged as an exciting research topic as they have the potential to provide numerous secondary metabolites. This study is focused on taxonomic novelties and new host records of endophytic fungi associated with Rhododendron plants collected from Cangshan Mountain in Yunnan Province, China. Pestalotiopsis fungi are associated with a vast array of plant species worldwide. In this study, fresh leaves of Rhododendron cyanocarpum, Rhododendron decorum, and Rhododendron delavayi were collected from Cangshan Mountain, Yunnan Province, China. Endophytic Pestalotiopsis fungi associated with Rhododendron were characterized based on phylogenetic analyses of combined ITS, TEF1-α, and TUB genes along with morphological characteristics. Six new species (Pestalotiopsis appendiculata, Pestalotiopsis cangshanensis, Pestalotiopsis daliensis, Pestalotiopsis fusoidea, Pestalotiopsis rosarioides, and Pestalotiopsis suae) and a new host record (Pestalotiopsis trachicarpicola) are described. Detailed descriptions and color photo plates of these species are provided. It is the first time that the endophytic fungi of Rhododendron plants in Cangshan Mountain have been studied.

Pestalotiopsis jiangsuensis sp. nov. Causing Needle Blight on Pinus massoniana in China

“…The excessive overlap of conidia makes it difficult to identify Pestalotioid species only by morphological characteristics [ 19 ]. Although some additional taxonomic features can also be used as the basis for the identification of Pestalotiopsis —such as the pigmentation of median cells, which is an important character to distinguish Pestalotiopsis funerea and P. triseta [ 23 , 48 ]—there are still great limitations [ 17 , 22 , 49 ]. However, the application of molecular data in the identification of Pestalotiopsis species has greatly improved the accuracy and credibility [ 22 , 23 , 26 , 50 , 51 ].…”

“…Pestalotiopsis species are widely distributed in the world as endophytes, plant pathogens, or saprobes [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ], mainly in tropical and temperate regions and have a wide range of host plants [ 15 , 18 , 19 ]. Initially, the characteristics of conidia, such as color, size, and appendages, are the key to the identification of Pestalotiopsis and related genera [ 20 , 21 ].…”

Pestalotioid Species Associated with Medicinal Plants in Southwest China and Thailand

“…The sequences were compared against the NCBI GenBank nucleotide database using BLASTn to evaluate the closest phylogenetic matches. All sequences used in this study were downloaded from GenBank referring to previous studies ( 16 , 23 , 27 , 30 , 44 , 65 , 67 , 76 – 79 ) ( Table 3 ). The single-gene sequences were checked with BioEdit v. 7.0.9.0 ( 80 ).…”

Exploring ascomycete diversity in Yunnan II: Introducing three novel species in the suborder Massarineae (Dothideomycetes, Pleosporales) from fern and grasses

“…Since Feng and Yang (2018) updated the status of fungal diversity in this region, the taxonomic study of ascomycetes has steadily increased and over 300 novel species have been discovered in the last five years ( Luo et al 2019 ; Phookamsak et al 2019 ; Dong et al 2020 ; Hyde et al 2020a , b ; Wanasinghe et al 2020 , 2022 ; Wang et al 2020 ; Mortimer et al 2021 ; Wijayawardene et al 2021b , 2022a ; Gu et al 2022 ; Jiang et al 2022 ; Yang et al 2022a , b ; Si et al 2023 ). However, most studies were restricted to certain groups of ascomycetes, such as bambusicolous fungi ( Jiang et al 2019 , 2021b ; Dai et al 2022 ; Phookamsak et al 2022 ), cordycipitoid fungi ( Wang et al 2020 ; Fan et al 2021 ; Dong et al 2022 ; Tang et al 2023 ), endolichenic fungi ( Si et al 2021 , 2023 ), lignicolous freshwater fungi ( Luo et al 2018a , b , 2019 ; Su et al 2018 ; Dong et al 2020 ; Shen et al 2022 ), nematode-trapping fungi ( Zhang et al 2020 , 2022a , b , c , 2023 ; Yang et al 2023b ) and woody litter-inhabiting fungi ( Mortimer et al 2021 ; Wanasinghe et al 2022 ), as well as fungi associated with specific host plants (e.g.…”

“…However, most studies were restricted to certain groups of ascomycetes, such as bambusicolous fungi ( Jiang et al 2019 , 2021b ; Dai et al 2022 ; Phookamsak et al 2022 ), cordycipitoid fungi ( Wang et al 2020 ; Fan et al 2021 ; Dong et al 2022 ; Tang et al 2023 ), endolichenic fungi ( Si et al 2021 , 2023 ), lignicolous freshwater fungi ( Luo et al 2018a , b , 2019 ; Su et al 2018 ; Dong et al 2020 ; Shen et al 2022 ), nematode-trapping fungi ( Zhang et al 2020 , 2022a , b , c , 2023 ; Yang et al 2023b ) and woody litter-inhabiting fungi ( Mortimer et al 2021 ; Wanasinghe et al 2022 ), as well as fungi associated with specific host plants (e.g. Camellia , Coffea , Magnolia , Mangifera and Rhododendron ) ( Wanasinghe et al 2020 ; Gu et al 2022 ; Lu et al 2022 ; Tibpromma et al 2022 ; Wijayawardene et al 2022a ; Yang et al 2022a , b , 2023a ). Comparable with the total estimated number of species that may be found in this region, these fungal inventories are still only representing a small number of extant ascomycetes in Yunnan.…”