title: Ophiostomatoid fungi associated with mangroves in South Africa, including Ophiostoma palustre sp. nov.
abstract: Mangrove trees are continuously under stress due to environmental and/or anthropogenic pressures, which expose them to attack by pathogens, compromising their survival. Ophiostomatoid fungi cause sap stain and diseases of a wide spectrum of tree species globally. These fungi infect trees through natural, insect, animal and/or human made wounds. During routine surveys of mangrove trees in South Africa, wounds on branches and stems of Avicennia marina were regularly monitored for the presence of ophiostomatoid fungi at ten study sites in the country. The stems of four mangrove species, A. marina, Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, Rhizophora mucronata and Barringtonia racemosa were also wounded and evaluated for the appearance of these fungi. Ophiostomatoid fungi were obtained from the mangrove associate B. racemosa, but not from any of the true mangroves. Analyses of DNA sequence data for the internal transcribed spacer, β-tubulin, calmodulin and translation elongation factor gene regions revealed that the fungi isolated from the wounds on B. racemosa belong to three species in the Ophiostomataceae, including a new taxon described here as Ophiostoma palustre sp. nov. These results suggest that the mangrove associate B. racemosa is more prone to colonization by ophiostomatoid fungi than the true mangroves.
authors: Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology (CTHB), Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.
authors: J Alexander
authors: JA
authors: Osorio
authors: Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology (CTHB), Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.
authors: Z Wilhelm
authors: ZW
authors: De Beer
authors: Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology (CTHB), Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.
authors: Michael J
authors: MJ
authors: Wingfield
authors: Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology (CTHB), Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa. jolanda.roux@fabi.up.ac.za.
authors: Jolanda
authors: J
authors: Roux
mesh_terms: D032407:Avicennia / Q000382:microbiology*; D031382:Barringtonia / Q000382:microbiology*; D055156:Ophiostoma / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification; D055155:Ophiostomatales / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D010802:Phylogeny; D043982:Rhizophoraceae / Q000382:microbiology*; D013019:South Africa; D053833:Wetlands
keywords: Barringtonia; Ophiostomatales; Sporothrix; Wound infection