No abstract

Ganoderma (Basidiomycota, Polyporales) is a cosmopolitan genus with the greatest diversity in the tropics. It causes white rot of a wide range of woody plants all over the world. In Europe, 7 species of the genus Ganoderma grow: Ganoderma adspersum, G. applanatum, G. carnosum, G. lucidum, G. pfeifferi, G. resinaceum and G. valesiacum. All of them also occur in Slovakia. The aim of the present study was to identify the presence of Ganoderma species in the urban areas of Slovakia and to find out their host preferences and topology of the basidiocarps on the colonised trees. A total 263 findings of Ganoderma obtained by own field research and processing of records from herbarium items located in natural museums in Bratislava (Slovakia) and Prague (Czech Republic) were analysed to detect their ecological characteristics. The occurrence of all 7 Ganoderma species was  recorded in the urban areas of Slovakia. The most common species is G. adspersum (39% of all records) with the widest range of host woody plants (24 species). G. applanatum is second most widespread species in the urban areas of Slovakia growing mostly on a decomposing wood of unknown trees (31% of all findings) and also on beeches (9% of all findings). G. resinaceum is third most widespread in the urban areas and it grew mainly on Quercus. G. lucidum was most often found on unknown trees (65% of all findings) and also on oaks (16% of all findings). The rarest Ganoderma species are G. valesiacum (only 1 record on Larix sp.), G. pfeifferi (4 records, mainly on Fagus sylvatica) and G. carnosum (4% of all records, mainly on a decomposing wood of unknown trees).

Abstract:The existence of two cryptic species within strains of the wood-decaying fungus Fomes fomentarius was revealed recently based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence variability. In this study for the first time the sequences of another molecular markers, partial translation elongation factor 1-α (efa) region and partial 25S large subunit ribosomal RNA gene were obtained and used to evaluate genetic variability of F. fomentarius. Congruent phylogeny was observed for all three markers used confirming the presence of two cryptic species within F. fomentarius. Surprisingly, ITS sequence variability within F. fomentarius was significantly lower compared to the variability of efa sequences (0.023 versus 0.036 nucleotide substitutions per site) questioning the discriminatory power of ITS sequences for fungal species identification.

The tinder polypore, Fomes fomentarius, is a wood-decaying macrofungus well known for its potential use in a wide range of biotechnological applications. The existence of 3 distinct internal transcribed spacer lineages/sublineages among its strains has been clearly established. Sublineage A1 consists of strains isolated from North America, whereas sublineage A2 consists of strains only from Europe. Lineage B comprises strains from Europe and Asia. A better understanding of the biological features of F. fomentarius lineages/sublineages could lead to improved characterization, leading to better biotechnological applications. The medicinal value of F. fomentarius is discussed.

Ganoderma resinaceum Boud. is commonly found in Mediterranean region, but rarely in Western, Central or Eastern Europe. It is a parasitic basidiomycetous fungus causing stem decay—especially in urban trees. A collection of nine fungal specimens from Slovakia (Central Europe), morphologically identified as G. resinaceum, was recently studied on the basis of sequence data from the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions. Analyses showed that the collections clustered into two separate groups. In this study—for the first time—the sequences of other molecular markers, namely partial translation elongation factor (tef1-α) region and partial 25S large subunit ribosomal RNA gene (25S LSU rRNA), as well as matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI–TOF MS) were obtained and used to evaluate the genetic variability of G. resinaceum. All these analyses confirm the existence of two previously unrecognized genotypes within the morphospecies.