Pseudoophiobolus
Pseudoophiobolus Phookamsak, Wanas. & K.D. Hyde, in Phookamsak, Wanasinghe, Hongsanan, Phukhamsakda, Huang, Tennakoon, Norphanphoun, Camporesi, Bulgakov, Promputtha, Mortimer, Xu & Hyde, Fungal Diversity 87: 322 (2017)
Index Fungorum number: IF 553922; Facesofungi number: FoF 03800
Etymology: The generic epithet ‘‘Pseudoophiobolus’’ refers to the resemblance to Ophiobolus.
Saprobic on herbaceous plants. Sexual morph: Ascomata dark brown to black, scattered, gregarious, semi-immersed to erumpent through the host epidermis, subglobose to hemisphaerical, uni-loculate, glabrous, ostiolate, papillate. Papilla mammiform to oblong, with rounded to truncate apex, composed of several layers of thick, brown to dark brown, pseudoparenchymatous cells, arranged in a textura angularis to textura prismatica, ostiole central, with porelike opening, with or without periphyses. Peridium thin to thick-walled, of unequal thickness, thin at the base, thicker at the sides towards the apex, composed of several layers of hyaline to dark brown, pseudoparenchymatous cells, arranged in textura angularis to textura prismatica. Hamathecium composed of dense, anastomosing, cellular pseudoparaphyses, embedded in a hyaline gelatinous matrix. Asci 8-spored, bitunicate, fissitunicate, cylindrical to cylindric-clavate, short pedicellate, apically rounded, with well-developed ocular chamber. Ascospores fasciculate, scolecosporous, subhyaline to pale yellowish, elongate-cylindric to subcylindric-clavate, or filiform, with rounded ends, tapered towards lower cells, with a swollen cell, multi-septate, smooth-walled. Asexual morph: Undetermined.
Type species: Pseudoophiobolus mathieui (Westend.) Phookamsak, Wanas., S.K. Huang, E. Camporesi & K.D.Hyde
Notes: Pseudoophiobolus is introduced to accommodate ophiobolus-like species which form a distinct lineage from the generic type of Ophiobolus and is typified by P. mathieui. Pseudoophiobolus resembles Ophiobolus in having scolecosporous ascospores, with swollen cells, and glabrous ascomata without brown, septate periphyses inside the ostiole. However, Pseudoophiobolus can be distinguished from Ophiobolus as its ascospores do not split into part spores and ascospores are often subhyaline to pale yellowish or light brown. Multi-gene phylogenetic analyses show that Pseudoophiobolus species are related to Nodulosphaeria.
References:
Phookamsak R, Wanasinghe DN, Hongsanan S, Phukhamsakda C et al. 2017 – Towards a natural classification of Ophiobolus and ophiobolus-like taxa; introducing three novel genera Ophiobolopsis, Paraophiobolus and Pseudoophiobolus in Phaeosphaeriaceae (Pleosporales). Fungal Diversity. 87, 299–339.