IMA Fungus 4(1): 111-122, doi: 10.5598/imafungus.2013.04.01.11
Luteocirrhus shearii gen. sp. nov. (Diaporthales, Cryphonectriaceae) pathogenic to Proteaceae in the South Western Australian Floristic Region
expand article infoColin Crane‡, Treena I. Burgess§
‡ Bentley Delivery Centre, Science Division, Department of Environment and Conservation, Australia§ Murdoch University, Centre for Phytophthora Science & Management, School of Veterinary and Life Sciences, Murdoch, Australia
© Colin Crane, Treena Burgess.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY-NC 4.0), which permits to copy and distribute the article for non-commercial purposes, provided that the article is not altered or modified and the original author and source are credited.
Citation: Crane C, Burgess TI (2013) Luteocirrhus shearii gen. sp. nov. (Diaporthales, Cryphonectriaceae) pathogenic to Proteaceae in the South Western Australian Floristic Region. IMA Fungus 4(1): 111-122. https://doi.org/10.5598/imafungus.2013.04.01.11
Open Access
Abstract
Morphological and DNA sequence characteristics of a pathogenic fungus isolated from branch cankers in Proteaceae of the South West Australian Floristic Region elucidated a new genus and species within Cryphonectriaceae (Diaporthales). The pathogen has been isolated from canker lesions in several Banksia species and Lambertia echinata subsp. citrina, and is associated with a serious decline of the rare B. verticillata. Lack of orange pigment in all observed structures except cirrhi, combined with pulvinate to globose black semi-immersed conidiomata with paraphyses, distinguishes the canker fungus from other genera of Cryphonectriaceae. This was confirmed by DNA sequence analysis of the ITS regions, ß-tubulin, and LSU genes. The fungus (sexual morph unknown) is described as Luteocirrhus shearii gen. sp. nov. Lesions in seedlings of Banksia spp. following wound inoculation and subsequent recovery confirm Koch’s postulates for pathogenicity. This pathogen of native Proteaceae is currently an emerging threat, particularly toward B. baxteri and B. verticillata.
Keywords
Australia, Banksia, Cryphonectriaceae, Emerging pathogen, Fungal pathogen, Canker, Natural ecosystems, Phylogenetics, Proteaceae, Zythiostroma