title: Genetic diversity of ectomycorrhizal Basidiomycetes from African and Indian tropical rain forests.
abstract: Ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi have a worldwide distribution. However, the ecology of tropical ECM fungi is poorly documented, limiting our understanding of the symbiotic associations between tropical plants and fungi. ECM Basidiomycete diversity was investigated for the first time in two tropical rain forests in Africa (Western Upper Guinea) and in Asia (Western Ghats, India), using a fragment of the mitochondrial large subunit rRNA gene to type 140 sporocarps and 54 ectomycorrhizas. To evaluate taxonomic diversity, phylogenetic analyses were performed, and 40 sequences included from identified European specimens were used as taxonomic benchmarks. Five clades were recovered corresponding to six taxonomic groups: boletoids, sclerodermatoids, russuloids, thelephoroids, and a clade grouping the Amanitaceae and Tricholomataceae families. Our results revealed that the Russulaceae species display a great diversity with several putative new species, especially in Guinea. Other taxonomic issues at family/section levels are also briefly discussed. This study provides preliminary insights into taxonomic diversity, ECM status, and biogeographic patterns of ECM fungi in tropical two rain forest ecosystems, which appear to be as diverse as in temperate and boreal forests.
authors.affiliation: UMR 113, Symbioses Tropicales et Méditerranéennes (LSTM), 34998, Montferrier-sur-Lez, France. taianariviere@yahoo.co.uk.|Institut Français de Pondichéry, 11 St Louis Street, Pondicherry, India. taianariviere@yahoo.co.uk.|Centre de Biologie pour la Gestion des Populations, Campus International de Baillarguet, CS 30016, 34988, Montferrier-sur-Lez cedex, France. taianariviere@yahoo.co.uk.
authors.forename: Taiana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Riviere
authors.affiliation: UMR 113, Symbioses Tropicales et Méditerranéennes (LSTM), 34998, Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Abdallah G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Diedhiou
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recherche Agronomique de Guinée, Conakry, Guinea.
authors.forename: Moussa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Diabate
authors.affiliation: Centre of Advanced Study in Botany (CASB), University of Madras, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Senthilarasu
authors.affiliation: Centre of Advanced Study in Botany (CASB), University of Madras, Chennai, India.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Natarajan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Annemieke
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Verbeken
authors.affiliation: Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (MNHN), Cryptogamie, 12 rue Buffon, 75005, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Bart
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Buyck
authors.affiliation: UMR 113, Symbioses Tropicales et Méditerranéennes (LSTM), 34998, Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dreyfus
authors.affiliation: UMR 113, Symbioses Tropicales et Méditerranéennes (LSTM), 34998, Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.
authors.forename: Gilles
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bena
authors.affiliation: UMR 113, Symbioses Tropicales et Méditerranéennes (LSTM), 34998, Montferrier-sur-Lez, France.|Laboratoire de Biologie et Physiologie Végétales, Université Antilles-Guyane, BP. 592, 97159, Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, France.
authors.forename: Amadou M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Ba
mesh_terms: D000349:Africa; D000363:Agaricales; D001487:Basidiomycota / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D044822:Biodiversity; D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D017753:Ecosystem; D005658:Fungi; D014644:Genetic Variation; D007194:India; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D038821:Mycorrhizae; D010802:Phylogeny; D010944:Plants / Q000382:microbiology*; D012338:RNA, Ribosomal, 23S / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014197:Trees / Q000382:microbiology*
chemical_list: D004271:DNA, Fungal; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D012338:RNA, Ribosomal, 23S