Li-Wei Zhou

Current advances in Phellinus sensu lato: medicinal species, functions, metabolites and mechanisms

Twenty-six species of Phellinus sensu lato, reported as medicinal mushrooms, are enumerated in this review. The species’ names were checked and revised according to contemporary taxonomy and the latest version of the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (Vienna Code); two misapplied names of Phellinus baumii Pilát and Phellinus himalayensis Y.C. Dai in previous reports are also discussed. Of the 20 types of medicinal functions, the most shared functions are antitumor and improving immunity, both of which may be viewed as the basal functions of Phellinus s. l. In addition, alleviating septic shock, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidation are also a routine functions mentioned often. The main medicinal metabolites, including several kinds of polysaccharides and polyphenols, are introduced. Different methods and conditions could purify various polysaccharides with difference in activity level even from the same species, while all polyphenols are hispidin and its derivatives in general. Three aspects of mechanism contribute to antitumor activities of polysaccharides: (1) promoting an immune response, (2) inducing cell apoptosis, and (3) inhibiting metastasis. Other general mechanisms of the metabolites in antioxidant activity, and in treating diabetes, as well as complications are summarized. We also elaborate on potential scientific strategies for obtaining the medicinal metabolites from Phellinus s. l., such as artificial cultivation, the discoveries of more species with medicinal functions, the utilization of species growing quickly, and the optimization of culture conditions and media supplements in fermentation.

Global diversity of the Ganoderma lucidum complex (Ganodermataceae, Polyporales) inferred from morphology and multilocus phylogeny.

Species of the Ganoderma lucidum complex are used in many types of health products. However, the taxonomy of this complex has long been chaotic, thus limiting its uses. In the present study, 32 collections of the complex from Asia, Europe and North America were analyzed from both morphological and molecular phylogenetic perspectives. The combined dataset, including an outgroup, comprised 33 ITS, 24 tef1α, 24 rpb1 and 21 rpb2 sequences, of which 19 ITS, 20 tef1α, 20 rpb1 and 17 rpb2 sequences were newly generated. A total of 13 species of the complex were recovered in the multilocus phylogeny. These 13 species were not strongly supported as a single monophyletic lineage, and were further grouped into three lineages that cannot be defined by their geographic distributions. Clade A comprised Ganoderma curtisii, Ganoderma flexipes, Ganoderma lingzhi, Ganoderma multipileum, Ganoderma resinaceum, Ganoderma sessile, Ganoderma sichuanense and Ganoderma tropicum, Clade B comprised G. lucidum, Ganoderma oregonense and Ganoderma tsugae, and Clade C comprised Ganoderma boninense and Ganoderma zonatum. A dichotomous key to the 13 species is provided, and their key morphological characters from context, pores, cuticle cells and basidiospores are presented in a table. The taxonomic positions of these species are briefly discussed. Noteworthy, the epitypification of G. sichuanense is rejected.

Global diversity and taxonomy of the Inonotus linteus complex (Hymenochaetales, Basidiomycota): Sanghuangporus gen. nov.,Tropicoporus excentrodendri and T. guanacastensis gen. et spp. nov., and 17 new combinations

Although Inonotus linteus complex is placed in the genus Inonotus, its perennial basidiocarps with a dimitic hyphal system, at least in the trama, distinguish the complex from other species in the genus, which have an annual habit and a monomitic hyphal system. The species number of Inonotus linteus complex has been increased in China and tropical America in recent publications. However, whether species in this complex belong to Inonotus has not specifically been addressed. To explore the phylogenetic placement of species of Inonotus linteus complex, we performed a comprehensive study using morphological and phylogenetic data based on global samples. nLSU (53 with 13 new) and ITS (70 with 18 new) datasets were used to produce the phylogenetic results. Taking into consideration the phylogenies inferred from the nLSU and ITS datasets, Inonotus is a polyphyletic genus comprising at least three clades. Clade A, the core Inonotus clade, contains the generic type, Inonotus hispidus, while Clades B and C comprise species from the Inonotus linteus complex. Morphological and phylogenetic evidence indicates that Clades B and C are new genera, and Sanghuangporus and Tropicoporus are introduced in this study. Ten species are transferred to Sanghuangporus and seven to Tropicoporus. Tropicoporus excentrodendri and T. guanacastensis spp. nov. are described, and their distinctive characters are discussed. Keys to the two new genera and the Inonotus sensu stricto, and to species of each new genus are provided.

Phylogeny, divergence time estimation, and biogeography of the genus Heterobasidion (Basidiomycota, Russulales)

There have been several investigations into the genus Heterobasidion, however, differentiation of species in these studies have depended on the gene regions analyzed. Reliable defining of species, establishing species divergence times and establishing species biogeographical distributions have been challenging. Here, we used a multilocus phylogenetic approach and maximum parsimony, maximum likehood, and Bayesian analyses to infer the phylogenetic relationships of Heterobasidion species. In addition, we focused on a fungus fossil-based approach and used the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II-the second subunit of RNA polymerase II (RPB1-RPB2) dataset to perform maximum likelihood-based estimation and Bayesian binary analyses, to assess the divergence and biogeographical distributions of Heterobasidion species. The Heterobasidion annousum/H. insulare species complex clusters in three groups in the phylogenetic analyses. Molecular dating suggests that ancestral Heterobasidion species originated in Eurasia during the Early Miocene, followed by dispersal and speciation to other continents during the Middle Miocene and Early Pliocene. Our data are compatible with the previous viewpoint that H. irregulare and H. occidentale colonized North America via different routes, which has been interpreted as Beringian and Thulean North Atlantic vicariance. In addition, we propose that the occurrence of H. araucariae in the southern Hemisphere was probably due to recent human-mediated introductions. Plate tectonics and long-distance dispersal are the most likely factors that influenced Heterobasidion speciation and biogeography.

Phylogeny and taxonomy of the Inonotus linteus complex

The Inonotus linteus complex comprises several closely related species characterized by pileate basidiomes, a heterogeneous hyphal system with a monomitic context and a dimitic hymenophoral trama. Setae are hymenial and basidiospores are broadly ellipsoid to subglobose, yellowish and thick-walled. Research to understand this complex have been particularly noticeable in East Asia. In the present paper, the complex was studied at a larger scale, including samples from Mesoamerica. Inonotus linteus, an epitype of this species being designated here, is circumscribed as a narrow sense based on morphological and phylogenetic data, and this has lead to delimiting a new species from Mesoamerica, viz. I. cubensis, and provides evidence for two additional species, I. alpinus and I. zonatus, from East Asia. Phylogenetic analyses of ITS sequences also confirmed the status of I. baumii, I. linteus, I. lonicericola, I. lonicerinus, I. vaninii, I. sanghuang, I. weigelae and I. weirianus as distinct taxa, while I. tenuicontextus is considered to be a synonym of I. weigelae. A key to 11 species in the complex is provided.

Phylogeny and global diversity of Polyporus group Melanopus (Polyporales, Basidiomycota)

Polyporus accommodates species with stipitate basidiocarps, a dimitic hyphal system with skeleto-binding hyphae, and hyaline, thin-walled, more or less cylindrical basidiospores. The species of Polyporus are divided into six morphological groups, of which Melanopus is characterized by coriaceous basidiocarps, thin context and a black cuticle on the stipe. In this study, we explore the phylogeny and species diversity of Polyporus sensu lato focusing on the group Melanopus based on global samples. Our combined ITS and nLSU dataset included 117 collections represented by 117 ITS and 94 nLSU sequences, of which 43 ITS and 37 nLSU sequences were newly generated. The resulting phylogenetic analysis recovered four clades, Favolus, Neofavolus, Melanopus and Polyporellus clades, while several species in the morphological groups Melanopus and Polyporus were outside these clades. Combined with morphological evidence, three new species in the Melanopus clade, Polyporus americanus, P. austroandinus and P. conifericola, are newly described and illustrated, and their distinctive characters are discussed. The illegitimate name Polyporus fraxineus is renamed as Polyporus fraxinicola. The phylogeny and taxonomy of each species in group Melanopus (morphology) or Melanopus clade (phylogeny) and related species are briefly discussed.

Fomitiporia pentaphylacis and F. tenuitubus spp. nov. (Hymenochaetales, Basidiomycota) from Guangxi, southern China

Two specimens of Hymenochaetaceae were collected from Guangxi, southern China, during a recent field trip in August 2011. They are described and illustrated here as two new species, Fomitiporia pentaphylacis and F. tenuitubus, based on a combination of morphological and phylogenetic (ITS and nLSU sequences) data. The two species share subglobose to globose, hyaline and thick-walled basidiospores with strongly cyanophilous in cotton blue and dextrinoid reaction in Melzer’s reagent. These characters are typical for Fomitiporia, differing from other genera in Hymenochaetaceae. F. pentaphylacis resembles F. pusilla in field by its minute basidiocarps, but F. pusilla has distinctly multiple tube layers and smaller basidiospores. F. tenuitubus is similar to F. erecta in both macro- and micro-morphological features, except its larger basidiocarps, smaller pores, and slightly shorter basidiospores. In the phylogenetic perspective, the two species nested within the Fomitiporia clade, but were separated from other sampled species as well as from each other.

Taxonomy and phylogeny of Ceriporia (Polyporales, Basidiomycota) with an emphasis of Chinese collections

Ceriporia accommodates a kind of wood-inhabiting polypores producing resupinate basidiocarps and causing a white rot. More than 30 species of this genus have been described; however, only a few species were referred to molecular phylogeny. In this study, a total of 203 specimens of Ceriporia were studied morphologically, and the ITS and/or nLSU regions from 42 samples, representing 18 species, were sequenced for phylogenetic analysis. Based on both morphological and phylogenetic analyses, three new species of Ceriporia, C. bubalinomarginata, C. pseudocystidiata and C. variegata, are described and illustrated. An annotated identification key is provided for all 20 species of this genus thus far known in China. Our phylogeny shows that (1) Ceriporia is not monophyletic, (2) C. spissa and C. viridans as morphologically circumscribed are polyphyletic, (3) C. inflata is retained for both C. inflata and C. jiangxiensis, and (4) presence or absence of hymenial cystidia is not a useful character in delimiting species relationships in Ceriporia.

Changbai wood-rotting fungi 16. A new species of Fomitopsis (Fomitopsidaceae)

Fomitopsis niveomarginata sp. nov. is described and illustrated from specimens originating from Changbaishan Nature Reserve, Jilin Province, northeastern China. It is characterized by annual to perennial, sessile to effused-reflexed basidocarps, with a cream-colored azonate and corky context, a yellowish brown and shining pore surface, and small, oblong-ellipsoid basidiospores. The new species is similar to Fomitella rhodophaea that has a concentrically sulcate and zoned pileal surface, smaller pores, and slightly wider basidiospores; furthermore, the latter occurs mainly in the tropical areas. Phylogenetically, the new species forms a well-supported, terminal monophyletic clade, distinct from other sampled Fomitopsis species and Fomitella rhodophaea. An identification key to the Chinese species of Fomitopsis is provided.

Taxonomy and phylogeny of wood-inhabiting hydnoid species in Russulales: two new genera, three new species and two new combinations

Russulales comprises a highly diverse group of species with respect to basidiocarp morphology and hymenophore type. We reconstructed evolutionary histories of Russulales using ITS and nLSU rDNA sequence data with an emphasis on phylogeny of wood-inhabiting hydnoid species in this order. Based on the combination of morphological and molecular evidence, two new genera, three new species and two new combinations are proposed. Dentipellis microspora and D. coniferarum, newly described, were placed outside Hericiaceae but are provisionally treated in Dentipellis due to their morphological similarity to the generic type. Dentipellis leptodon and D. taiwaniana are transferred to the new genus Dentipellicula as D. leptodon and D. taiwaniana, which is designated as the generic type. The new genus Dentipellopsis was erected to accommodate a newly described species D. dacrydicola. Characters are provided in a generic key to distinguish Dentipellicula, Dentipellis and Dentipellopsis that morphologically are highly similar in addition to a key to the current species in Dentipellis. A new species of Gloeodontia was described based on both molecular and morphological data, and a key to this genus also is provided.