Three new species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Glomeromycota) and Acaulospora gedanensis revised.

Studies of the morphology and the 45S nuc rDNA phylogeny of three potentially undescribed arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (phylum Glomeromycota) grown in cultures showed that one of these fungi is a new species of the genus Diversispora in the family Diversisporaceae; the other two fungi are new Scutellospora species in Scutellosporaceae. Diversispora vistulana sp. nov. came from maritime sand dunes of the Vistula Spit in northern Poland, and S. graeca sp. nov. and S. intraundulata sp. nov. originally inhabited the Mediterranean dunes of the Peloponnese Peninsula, Greece. In addition, the morphological description of spores of Acaulospora gedanensis, originally described in 1988, was emended based on newly found specimens, and the so far unknown phylogeny of this species was determined. The phylogenetic analyses of 45S sequences placed this species among Acaulospora species with atypical phenotypic and histochemical features of components of the two inner germinal walls.

Three new species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi of the genus Diversispora from maritime dunes of Poland.

Three new species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi of the genus Diversispora (phylum Glomeromycota) were described based on their morphology and molecular phylogeny. The phylogeny was inferred from the analyses of the partial 45S rDNA sequences (18S-ITS-28S) and the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II (rpb1) gene. These species were associated in the field with plants colonizing maritime sand dunes of the Baltic Sea in Poland and formed mycorrhiza in single-species cultures.

Carex pulicaris abundance is positively associated with soil acidity, rainfall and floristic diversity in the eastern distribution range.

Carex pulicaris is considered an endangered species, and further losses are forecast under the influence of even moderate climate change. Local studies indicate that temporal declines in C. pulicaris abundance are positively correlated to decreases in precipitation and increases in air temperature. Determining ecological properties on larger scales than local ones can help develop effective protection programs for the species. We hypothesize that the local relationships observed between C. pulicaris abundance and precipitation, air temperature and soil properties will be confirmed in a spatially-oriented large-scale study performed in situ. Therefore, the present study takes a novel, large-scale integrated approach to (1) precisely characterize the ecological requirements of C. pulicaris within its eastern distribution range, and (2) determine the influence of its community type, soil properties and climatic conditions on its abundance. It was found that C. pulicaris is not a dominant or codominant species in the studied phytocoenoses in the eastern distribution range. Five natural vegetation groups including C. pulicaris, with significantly diverse species compositions, were resolved: well supported Estonian, Polish, Slovak and Radecz groups, and a weakly-supported Ambiguous group. The abundance of C. pulicaris was found to be positively correlated with the composition of the geographically-diversified plant communities and atmospheric precipitation, and to be also negatively associated with latitude and soil pH. Although the species is adapted to a relatively wide range of soil types, such adaptation requires appropriate substrate moisture level and light conditions. The species prefers moist organic and mineral soils and grows on both acid and neutral medium, characterized by a narrow C:N ratio, with various amounts of digestible total P, Mg and N, and low levels of digestible K. Climate change, manifested by reduced rainfall, may be one of the most important predictors negatively affecting the occurrence of C. pulicaris.

A new order, Entrophosporales, and three new Entrophospora species in Glomeromycota.

As a result of phylogenomic, phylogenetic, and morphological analyses of members of the genus Claroideoglomus, four potential new glomoid spore-producing species and Entrophospora infrequens, a new order, Entrophosporales, with one family, Entrophosporaceae (=Claroideoglomeraceae), was erected in the phylum Glomeromycota. The phylogenomic analyses recovered the Entrophosporales as sister to a clade formed by Diversisporales and Glomeraceae. The strongly conserved entrophosporoid morph of E. infrequens, provided with a newly designated epitype, was shown to represent a group of cryptic species with the potential to produce different glomoid morphs. Of the four potential new species, three enriched the Entrophosporales as new Entrophospora species, E. argentinensis, E. glacialis, and E. furrazolae, which originated from Argentina, Sweden, Oman, and Poland. The fourth fungus appeared to be a glomoid morph of the E. infrequens epitype. The physical association of the E. infrequens entrophosporoid and glomoid morphs was reported and illustrated here for the first time. The phylogenetic analyses, using nuc rDNA and rpb1 concatenated sequences, confirmed the previous conclusion that the genus Albahypha in the family Entrophosporaceae sensu Oehl et al. is an unsupported taxon. Finally, the descriptions of the Glomerales, Entrophosporaceae, and Entrophospora were emended and new nomenclatural combinations were introduced.

Bioaccumulation of Macronutrients in Edible Mushrooms in Various Habitat Conditions of NW Poland-Role in the Human Diet.

Recently, the interest in mushroom consumption has been growing, since their taste and low calorific value are appreciated, but also due to their nutritional value. In determining the usefulness of mushrooms in the human diet, it is important to consider the conditions of their occurrence to perform the assessment of bioaccumulation of minerals. The aim of the study was: (a) to determine the content of selected macronutrients (P, K, Ca, Mg, Na) in fruiting bodies of Boletus edulis, Imleria badia, Leccinum scabrum and the soils, (b) to determine their bioaccumulation potential taking into account the habitat conditions, and (c) an attempt to estimate their role in covering the requirement for macronutrients of the human organism. The research material was obtained in the NW of Poland: Uznam and Wolin, the Drawa Plain and the Insko Lakeland. In the soil, we determined the content of organic matter, pH, salinity and the content of absorbable and general forms of macronutrients. The content of macronutrients in mushrooms was also determined. Chemical analyses were performed using the generally accepted test methods. The study showed that in NW Poland, B. edulis grew on the acidic soils of Arenosols, and I. badia and L. scabrum grew on Podzols. The uptake of K, Mg and Ca by the tested mushrooms was positively, and P and Na negatively correlated with the content of these elements in the soil. The acidity of the soil affected the uptake of K and Mg by mushrooms. There was no effect of the amount of organic matter in the soil noticed on the content of macronutrients (except sodium) in mushrooms. Among the studied macronutrients, none of the mushrooms accumulated Ca, while P and K were generally accumulated in the highest amounts, regardless of the species. Each of the other elements was usually accumulated at a similar level in the fruiting bodies of the species we studied. The exception was I. badia, which accumulated higher amounts of Mg compared to B. edulis and L. scabrum. Mushrooms can enrich the diet with some macronutrients, especially in P and K.

New Glomeromycotan Taxa, Dominikia glomerocarpica sp. nov. and Epigeocarpum crypticum gen. nov. et sp. nov. From Brazil, and Silvaspora gen. nov. From New Caledonia.

Examination of fungal specimens collected in the Atlantic rain forest ecosystems of Northeast Brazil revealed many potentially new epigeous and semihypogeous glomerocarp-producing species of the phylum Glomeromycota. Among them were two fungi that formed unorganized epigeous glomerocarps with glomoid spores of almost identical morphology. The sole structure that distinguished the two fungi was the laminate layer 2 of their three-layered spore wall, which in spores of the second fungus crushed in PVLG-based mountants contracted and, consequently, transferred into a crown-like structure. Surprisingly, phylogenetic analyses of sequences of the 18S-ITS-28S nuc rDNA and the rpb1 gene indicated that these glomerocarps represent two strongly divergent undescribed species in the family Glomeraceae. The analyses placed the first in the genus Dominikia, and the second in a sister clade to the monospecific generic clade Kamienskia with Kamienskia bistrata. The first species was described here as Dominikia glomerocarpica sp. nov. Because D. glomerocarpica is the first glomerocarp-forming species in Dominikia, the generic description of this genus was emended. The very large phylogenetic distance and the fundamental morphological differences between the second species and K. bistrata suggested us to introduce a new genus, here named as Epigeocarpum gen. nov., and name the new species Epigeocarpum crypticum sp. nov. In addition, our analyses also focused on an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus originally described as Rhizophagus neocaledonicus, later transferred to the genus Rhizoglomus. The analyses indicated that this species does not belong to any of these two genera but represents a new clade at the rank of genus in the Glomeraceae, here described as Silvaspora gen. nov.