6 Chytridiomycota, Monoblepharidomycota, and Neocallimastigomycota

High-level classification of the Fungi and a tool for evolutionary ecological analyses

“…Motile zoospores spherical, usually [ 4 um diam, with or without flagellar plug and kinetosome spur; 0-3 microtubule roots present; nonflagellated centriole equal to or longer than diameter and attached to kinetosome throughout its length; cultures grow on chitin; habitat mostly in soil and freshwater. Type: Polychytrium Ajello Remark: The above description is combined from Longcore and Simmons (2012) and Powell and Letcher (2014 Diagnosis: Thallus monocentric, eucarpic; sporangium interbiotic, inoperculate or endo-operculate with one or several discharge apparatus, rhizoidal axes multiple; kinetosome at sharp angle to the non-flagellated centriole and attached to it throughout most of the length; cytoplasmic microtubules absent; habitat mostly in agricultural soils. Type: Rhizophlyctis Fischer Remark: The above description is taken from Powell and Letcher (2014).…”

“…Within the former 'chytrid' group, Monoblepharomycota is considered as a separate phylum comprising classes Hyaloraphidiomycetes, Monoblepharidomycetes and Sanchytriomycetes class nov., following the phylogenies in Powell and Letcher (2014) and Karpov et al (2017a). The treatment of the family Olpidiaceae within Olpidiomycota at the phylum level is warranted based on phylogenies and age, but its exact position remains uncertain (James et al 2006a;White et al 2006;Sekimoto et al 2011).…”

Morphologic and molecular data help adopting the insect-pathogenic nephridiophagids (Nephridiophagidae) among the early diverging fungal lineages, close to the Chytridiomycota

“…The only microtubules detected in nephridiophagids so far are intranuclear spindle microtubules formed during nuclear division (Radek and Herth 1999). Thus, the morphology of the kinetosome-associated structures useful in the determination of families and genera of zoosporic fungi cannot be used for classification here (Powell and Letcher 2014). In general, the Blastocladiomycota, Chytridiomycota s.str., Neocallimastigomycota, and Monoblepharidomycota -the Chytridiomycota s.l.…”

“…In general, the Blastocladiomycota, Chytridiomycota s.str., Neocallimastigomycota, and Monoblepharidomycota -the Chytridiomycota s.l. -develop posterior flagellate zoospores when free-living but lose the flagella when the life cycle is endoparasitic in all stages , Voigt 2012, Powell and Letcher 2014. The nephridiophagids appear to have lost the ability to produce flagella, much like the endoparasitic Microsporidia.…”

“…The MLCs, assemblages of lipid globules, endoplasmic reticulum, mitochondria, and microbodies in Chytridiomycota s.l. are suggested to be involved in the conversion of energy from lipids (Powell 1976, Powell andLetcher 2014). Lipid globules to date have not been identified in nephridiophagids, and the presence of microbodies is similarly unclear.…”