Sclerostagonospora lathyri

Sclerostagonospora lathyri Wanas., Camporesi, E.B.G. Jones & K.D. Hyde, in Wanasinghe et al., Fungal Diversity: 10.1007/s13225-018-0395-7, [141] (2018)

Index Fungorum number: IF 554196; Facesofungi number: FoF 04038

Etymology: The specific epithet reflects the host genus Lathyrus.

Holotype: MFLU 15-2525.

Saprobic on Lathyrus. Sexual morph: Undetermined. Asexual morph: coelomycetous. Conidiomata 250–350 μm high, 200–250 μm diam. (x̄ = 295.6 × 223.5 μm, n = 5), pycnidial, effuse, solitary, gregarious or confluent, semi-immersed to superficial, unilocular, globose, glabrous, dark brown, ostiolate. Ostiole centrally located, papillate, circular. Peridium 15–30 μm wide, composed of thick-walled cells of textura angularis, brown. Conidiophores reduced to conidiogenous cells. Conidiogenous cells phialidic, integrated, flask-shaped, hyaline, smooth-walled. Conidia 12–18 × 3.5–4.5 μm (x̄ = 15.9 × 3.8 μm, n = 40), fusiform to cylindrical, guttulate, continuous, straight or slightly curved, 3-septate, slightly constricted at septa, obtuse at apex and base, sometimes slightly truncate at base, pale brown, smooth-walled.

Material examined: ITALY, Arezzo, near Poppi, on dead aerial stems of Lathyrus sp. (Fabaceae), 16 May 2014, Erio Camporesi IT 1876 (MFLU 15-2525, holotype); ex-type living culture, MFLUCC 14-0958.

GenBank Numbers: ITS: MG828955, LSU: MG829066, SSU: MG829170, TEF: MG829235.

Notes: Based on the multi-gene phylogenetic analysis, Sclerostagonospora lathyri clustered with other Sclerostagonospora species and in particularly, it shares a close affinity to S. opuntiae. Morphologically S. opuntiae differs from S. lathyri in having specific longitudinal striations on the conidia, whereas S. lathyri lacks longitudinal striations.