The genus Anthopsis and its phylogenetic position in Chaetothyriales

Abstract

The genus Anthopsis was introduced for a black fungus with peculiar, inverted phialides and triangular conidia. The genus accommodates, in addition to the type species Anthopsis deltoidea, which once was reported as a cause of human phaeohyphomycosis, two further taxa: A. catenata and A. microspora. Current taxonomy is mainly based on microscopic structures of phialides. To assess the phylogenetic position of the genus, sequences of the internal transcribed spacer region and partial LSU rDNA were obtained for Anthopsis spp. and compared with sequences from public databases. Phylogenetic analyses based on both loci were used to assess the evolutionary relationships of Anthopsis spp. at the family and ordinal levels. Anthopsis s.str. was found to cluster in Chaetothyriales, while A. catenata proved to be of helotialean affinity. Thermotolerance and morphology of each species were recorded.