ISSN: 2320-5407 Int. J. Adv. Res. 7(3), 1361-1364 Journal Homepage: - www.journalijar.com Article DOI: 10.21474/IJAR01/8766 DOI URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.21474/IJAR01/8766 RESEARCH ARTICLE MYCOSPHAERELLA LIMNETICA SP. NOV. (ASCOMYCETES) ON SUBMERGED WOOD FROM MAHARASHTRA, INDIA. 1. 2. 3. K. N. Borse1, N. S. Pawar2 and B. D. Borse3. S.S.V.P. Sanstha‟s L. K. Dr. P. R. Ghogrey Sci. College, Dhule, M.S., India. S.S.V.P. S.‟s Arts, Comm. and Sci. College, Shindkheda, Dhule, M.S., India. N.S. S. Dhule‟s U. P. Arts and Science College, Dahiwel, Dhule, M.S., India. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….... Manuscript Info Abstract ……………………. ……………………………………………………………… Manuscript History Received: 20 January 2019 Final Accepted: 22 February 2019 Published: March 2019 Key words:Freshwater ascomycetes, wood, systematics. submerged Mycosphaerella limnetica a new species in Pezizomycotina, Dothideomycetes, Capnodials, Mycospharellaceae, encountred on decorticated submerged woody debris from a freshwater river (Aner, Maharashtra) in India, is described and illustrated. The characteristic features of the new species are: Ascomata: subglobose, semiimmersed, black, papillate, ostiolate with conical beak. Peridium: thickwalled, composed of cells of textura angularis. Pseudoparaphyses: absent. Asci: fissitunicate, 8-spored, 2-3 seriate, clavate, 90-120 x 1420 m, lacking stalk, rounded at the apex. Ascospores: one-septate, septum supra-median, upper cell broader and shorter than basal cell, clavate to cylindrical, multigattulate, hyalne, becoming golden colored at maturity, with cylindrical gelatinous sheath which constricted at the septum, becoming elongated and diffuse in water. Copy Right, IJAR, 2019,. All rights reserved. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….... Introduction:Freshwater ascomycetes are defined as ascomycetous fungi which have been recorded in freshwater lentic and lotic habitats and complete part, or the whole of their lifecycle within freshwater environment, playing an important role in recycling organic matter (Shearer, 1993; Wong et al., 1998), and include lignicolous ascomycetes and their asexual state that grow on wood, leaves or asexual spores found in foam samples (Cai et al., 2006; Vijaykrishna et al., 2006). Shearer (1993) listed 288 species of ascomycetes that had been recorded from freshwater habitats; this number has grown to 622 species (Shearer et al., 2014; Cai et al., 2014). The genus Mycosphaerella was introduced by Johanson (1884). Type species of the genus is Mycosphaerella punctiformis (Pers. & Fr.) Starback. The species of the genus are characterized by having, Ascomata: solitary or gregarious, globose, subglobose, conical or depressed, in some species surrounded by a hyphoid stroma or even enclosed in a compact stroma, immersed or erumpent, ostiolate, epapillate or with a short papilla, thin-walled to medium thick-walled. Peridium: composed of 1 to 4 layers of dark, polygonal cells. Pseudoparaphyses: usually absent; young ascomata filled with a pseudoparenchyma of thin-walled, polygonal or rounded, deliquescing cells. Asci: 8-spored, elongate-cylindrical, ventricose, ovoid or rarely short clavate, bitunicate, arising in a fascicle or parallel to each other from a small-celled ascogenous tissue at the base of the ascomata venter. Ascospores: biseriate or irregularly arranged, ellipsoidal to elongate, usually 3 times as long as wide, 1-septate near the middle, hyaline, in some species becoming brownish in age or surrounded by a gelatinous sheath. In this paper, we describe Corresponding Author:- K. N. Borse. Address:- S.S.V.P. Sanstha‟s L. K. Dr. P. R. Ghogrey Sci. College, Dhule, M.S., India. 1361 ISSN: 2320-5407 Int. J. Adv. Res. 7(3), 1361-1364 and illustrate a new species of Mycosphaerella that was found on decorticated submerged wood collected from a freshwater river Aner (Maharashtra) in India. Matrials and Methods:The methods for collection and morphological characterization are outlined in Borse et al. (2016). Asci and hamathesia were mounted in India ink (Camel Band) for illustrations. The holotype specimen is deposited in the Herbarium Cryptogamie Indiae Orientalis (H.C.I.O.), Division of Mycology and Plant Pathology, I.A.R.I. Pusa Campus, New Delhi, India (HCIO- 52062). Taxonomy Mycosphaerella limnetica K.N. Borse, N. S Pawar and B.D. Borse sp. nov. MycoBank No: Mycobank: MB 830068, Figs 1, 2 Holotype: INDIA, Aner dam (on Aner river, Shirpur), Dhule, Maharashtra, on submerged wood, 26 Jan 1998, leg. K. N. Borse (HCIO- 52062). Description Ascomata: globose to subglobose, superficial or immersed, 230-470 m diam., brown, ostiolate with conical beak. Peridium: thick-walled, composed of cells of textura angularis to globosum. Pseudoparaphyses: absent. Asci: fissitunicate, 8-spored, 2-3 seriate, clavate, 90-120 x 14-20 m, lacking stalk, rounded at the apex. Ascospores: oneseptate, septum supramedian, upper cell broader and shorter than basal cell, clavate to cylindrical, multigattulate, hyalne becoming golden, upper cell 13.0-20.5 x 10-14 m, lower cell 6-13 x 3-5 m, with cylindrical gelatinous sheath which constricted at the septum, becoming elongated and diffuse in water, Etymology: From the Greek, „limn‟ meaning standing water referring to freshwater habitat. Anamorph: Not known Discusion The general characteristics of the present collection fit within the concept of the genus Mycosphaerella which was introduced by Johanson (1884). M. limnetica is differs markedly from the other freshwater and marine species of the genus: i) The present taxon is not substrate specific as many other species of the geuns are parasitic and occur on specific substrate, ii) Ascomata are more than 230 m as in other aquatic species lesser than 175 m in diameter, iii) Asci are longer than 90 m as in other aquatic species shorter than 65 m, iv) Ascospores are more than 10 m as in other aquatic species lesser than 8.5 m in diameter. Comparison of marine and freshwater species of the genus with the present fungus is provided in the Table 1. Table 1:- Comparison of morphological characters of Mycosphaerella limnetica and freshwater and marine species Species Ascomata Asci Ascospores Habitat M. limnetica 230-470 m 90-120 x 13-20.5 x 10-14 Freshwater, saprobic on submerged decorticated diam. 14-20 m m, with sheath wood M. aquatica (Cooke) J.H. Mill. ----20 x 04 m, Freshwater, parasitic on (Cooke, 1883, Miller, 1941) leaves of Quercus without sheath aquatica M. ascophylli Cotton (1907) 65-130 x 80- 50-60 x 18- 18-21 x 4-5 m, Marine, symbiotic on algae Ascophyllum without sheath 90 m 20 m nodosum and Pelvetia canaliculatum M. marina Deakin (Swinscow, 100-150 m 30-40 x 10- 10-15 x 4-6 m, Marine, parasitc on 1965) lichen thallii of diam. without sheath 15 m Verrucaria mucosa and V. microspora M. pneumatophorae Kohlm. 90-170 x 37-60 x 15- 14-18 x 7-8.5 µm, Marine, saprobic on 1362 ISSN: 2320-5407 Int. J. Adv. Res. 7(3), 1361-1364 (Kohlm. & Kohlm., 1979) 110-175 µm 21 µm without sheath M. salicorniae (Rabenh.) Lindau (Kohlm. & Kohlm., 1979) 22-80 x 2480 m 20-40 x 1018 m 10-18 x 3.6 m, with sheath M. staticicola (Pat.) (Kohlm. & Kohlm., 1979) Dias. 60-80 x 60120 m 30-50 x 1418 m 12-15 x 4-6 m, without sheath M. suaedae-australis Hansf. (Kohlm. & Kohlm., 1979) Above 150 m diam. 60 x 13 m 18-20 x 3-3.5 m, without sheath pneumatophores of Avicennia species Marine, saprobic on Salicornia and Suaeda species Marine, saprobic on Armeria and Limonium species Marine, saprobic on Suaedae-australis Acknowledgments:- We wish to acknowledge the generous cooperation of H‟ble authorities of management and H‟ble principals of our respective colleges for providing the numerous facilities to enable us to continue the research. Thank are due to the authorities of Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Washington DC, USA for providing pd files of research articles / papers on freshwater fungi. Fig. 1:- Mycosphaerella limnetica A.Ascomata from submerged wood, B.Ascus, C.Ascospores with sheath (arrow). Scale bars: A=20 µm; B-C=10 µm) 1363 ISSN: 2320-5407 Int. J. Adv. Res. 7(3), 1361-1364 Fig. 2:- Mycosphaerella limnetica D. Ascomat, E. Asci, F. Ascospore with sheath (arrow), G. Ascospore with sheath (arrow). References:1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. Borse, B.D., Tuwar, A.R., Patil, V.R., Pawar, N.B., Patil, S.Y. & Borse, K.N. (2016). Aquatic Ascomycetes from India: The genus Savoryella. Sci. Park Res. J., 3: 1-5. Cai, L., Hyde, K.D. & Tsui, C.K.M. (2006) “Genera of freshwater fungi”, Fungal Diversity Press, Hong Kong, China. pp. 1-261. Cai, L., Hu, D.M., Liu, F., Hyde, K.D., & Jones, E.B.G. (2014) The molecular phylogeny of freshwater Sordariomycets and discomycetes. In: “Freshwater Mycology and Fungal-Like Organisms”, Walter de Gruyer, GmbH, Berlin, Gemany, pp. 47-71. Cooke, M.C. (1883) On Sphaerella and its allies. The Journal of Botany. 21: 106-110. Cotton, A.D. (1907) Notes on marine Pyrenomycetes. Trans. Br. Mycol. Soc., 3: 92-99. Johanson, C.J. (1884) Svampar Fran Island. Oefvers. K. Vetensk.-Akad., Foerh., 41: 157-174. Kohlmeyer, J. & Kohlmeyer, E. (1979) Marine Mycology: The Higher Fungi,. Academic press, New York, pp. 689. Miller, J.H. (1941) Georgia Pyrenomycetes. II. Mycologia, 33: 74-81. Shearer, C.A. (1993) Freshwater Ascomycetes. Nova Hedwigia, 56: 1-33. Shearer, C.A., Pang, K.L., Suetrong, S. & Raja, H.A. (2014) Phylogeny of the Dothideomycetes and other classes of freshwater fissitunicate Ascomycota. In: “Freshwater Mycology and Fungal-Like Organisms”, Walter de Gruyer, GmbH, Berlin, Gemany, pp. 25-45. Swinscow, T.D.V. (1965) The marine species of Arthopyrenia in the British Isles: Pyrenocarpous lichens-8. The Lichenologists, 3: 55-64. Vijaykrishna, D., Jeewon, R. & Hyde, K.D. (2006) Molecular taxonomy, origin and evolution of freshwater Ascomycetes. Fungal Diversity, 23: 351-390. Wong, M.K.M., Goh, T.K., Hodgkiss, I.J., Hyde, K.D., Ranghoo, V.M., Tsui, C.K.M., Ho, W.H., Wong, S.W. and Yuen, T.C. (1998) The role of fungi in freshwater ecosystems. Biodivers. Conserv., 7: 1187-1206. 1364