Interactions among ammonia fungi on MY agar medium with varying pH

Abstract

Five early-phase ammonia fungi (EP fungi) -Amblyosporium botrytis, Ascobolus denudatus, Peziza moravecii, Pseudombrophila petrakii, Coprinopsis phlyctidospora, and Tephrocybe tesquorum, and one late-phase ammonia fungus (LP fungus), Hebeloma vinosophyllumwere co-cultured on malt extract-yeast extract agar media at pH 5.5, 7.0, 8.0, and 9.0. The co-cultures among the earlystage EP fungi Amblyosporium botrytis, Ascobolus denudatus, Peziza moravecii, and Pseudombrophila petrakii, generally did not inhibit or accelerate the reproductive structure formation of the opposed fungi. Among the EP fungi, Am. botrytis, As. denudatus, and Pe. moravecii intermingled with each other. The late-stage EP fungus T. tesquorum inhibited the growth of other EP fungi. Another late-stage EP fungus, C. phlyctidospora, showed ability to invade other EP fungi, but it did not deeply invade into the territories of early-stage EP fungi. The LP fungus H. vinosophyllum tended to accelerate basidioma formation of C. phlyctidospora at pH 5.5 and 9.0. H. vinosophyllum formed the highest numbers of basidomata at pH 5.5. These results show that successive occurrence of ammonia fungi is caused by the interspecifi c interactions among ammonia fungi as well as by the physiological characteristic of each fungus associated with conditions of its inhabiting soils, such as pH and nitrogen concentration.

Propagation strategy of ammonia fungi

“…velenovskyi grows vigorously even at 0.0001 M NH 4 Cl (Fig. 2; Licyayo and Suzuki 2006). These fi ndings indicate that ammonia fungi can be divided into three groups in terms of adaptation to ammonium ion concentration: (1) species adapted to a high concentration of ammonium ion, composed of some EP fungi (saprobic ammonia fungi), (2) species adapted to a wide range of ammonium ion concentrations, composed of some EP fungi (saprobic ammonia fungi), and (3) species nonadapted to a high concentration of ammonium ion, composed of some EP fungi and LP fungi (Fig.…”

“…These fi ndings indicate that ammonia fungi can be divided into three groups in terms of adaptation to ammonium ion concentration: (1) species adapted to a high concentration of ammonium ion, composed of some EP fungi (saprobic ammonia fungi), (2) species adapted to a wide range of ammonium ion concentrations, composed of some EP fungi (saprobic ammonia fungi), and (3) species nonadapted to a high concentration of ammonium ion, composed of some EP fungi and LP fungi (Fig. 2; Licyayo and Suzuki 2006). These results suggest that the major nitrogen source for vegetative growth of ammonia fungi is ammoniumnitrogen at neutral to weakly alkaline conditions, irrespective of their nutritional modes, and that the nitrogen source utilized by the ectomycorrhizal ammonia fungi gradually switches from ammonium-nitrogen to nitratenitrogen associated with the decline of pH in the ureatreated soil.…”

Effects of environmental factors on basidiospore germination of ammonia fungi <i>Coprinopsis</i> spp. collected from different geographical areas

“…Similarly, basidiospore germination in L. tylicolor is stimulated with 0.00001-0.3 M NH 4 -N at pH 5.0-12.0 (Suzuki 1989). Conidium germination of Amblyosporium botrytis is stimulated with 0.0003-0.6 M NH 4 Cl aqueous solution adjusted at pH 5.0-9.0 (Licyayo 2007). Ascospore germination of Ascobolus (As.…”

“…Spores of these species, except for Am. botrytis, do not germinate at all in distilled water (Suzuki et al 1982;Suzuki 1992Suzuki , 2006Licyayo 2007;Deng and Suzuki 2008). All these EP fungi appear well adapted to high NH 4 -N concentration under weak acidic to weak alkaline conditions at their basidiospore germination stage.…”