Heleococcum
Heleococcum C.A. Jørg., Bot. Tidsskr. 37: 417 (1922)
Hypocreomycetidae, Hypocreales, Bionectriaceae, Heleococcum
Index Fungorum number: IF 2253; Facesoffungi number: FoF 10877; 4 morphological species; 2 species with sequence data
Saprobic, on moist or saline alkaline soil, isolated from submerged wood in seawater. Sexual morph: Ascomata astromatic, cleistothecial, superficial, scattered or in groups of a few, globose, yellow, salmon-coloured, light orange to orange or dark brown, KOH-, lactic acid-, lacking ostioles. Peridium multi-layered. Paraphyses lacking. Asci 8-spored, unitunicate, cylindrical, clavate, subglobose to ovoid or saccate, evanescent, occasionally sessile, without an apical ring. Ascospores 1-septate, ellipsoidal or ovoid, hyaline, pale yellow or pale brown, smooth or with verruculose walls, occasionally with wing-like ridges, with or without a gelatinous sheath. Asexual morph: Hyphomycetous, acremonium-like. Conidiophores semi-macronematous or micronematous, mononematous, usually unbranched, septate basally hyaline, smooth-walled. Conidiogenous cells (phialides) cylindrical to subulate, straight or slightly curved, hyaline, smooth-walled, with non-flared small collarettes, without a prominent peridinal thickening. Conidia ellipsoidal to ovoid or cylindrical to allantoid, hyaline, smooth-walled, grouped in slimy heads. (copied from Perera et al. 2023).
Type species: Heleococcum aurantiacum C.A. Jørg., Bot. Tidsskr. 37: 417 (1922)
Notes: Jørgensen (1922) introduced the cleistothecial genus Heleococcum based on H. aurantiacum isolated from moist soil in Denmark. Jørgensen (1922) accepted Heleococcum in Aspergillaceae considering the cleistothecial ascomata. Later, another four species were added to the genus (Rehner and Samuels 1995, Udagawa et al. 1995, Bilanenko et al. 2005). However, H. alkalinum (an alkali-tolerant species) was transferred to Sodiomyces (Plectosphaerellaceae) based on multi-locus phylogeny (Bilanenko et al. 2005, Grum-Grzhimaylo et al. 2013). They lack a nectria-like centrum and have deliquescent asci. Heleococcum species resemble hypocrealean taxa by their vividly coloured ascomata and acremonium-like asexual morphs. Rehner and Samuels (1995) proposed to place H. japonense in Bionectriaceae based on morphological characteristics and SSU sequence data. Grum-Grzhimaylo et al. (2013) also confirmed the placement of H. aurantiacum and H. japonense in Bionectriaceae based on combined LSU, ITS, SSU, rpb2 and tef1 phylogeny. Four species are accommodated in Heleococcum. Heleococcum aurantiacum and the ex-type of H. japonense have DNA sequence data (copied from Perera et al. 2023).
Species illustrated in this entry:
Heleococcum aurantiacum C.A. Jørg.
References:
Bilanenko E, Sorokin D, Ivanova M et al. 2005 – Heleococcum alkalinum, a new alkali-tolerant ascomycete from saline soda soils. Mycotaxon 91, 497–507.
Grum-Grzhimaylo AA, Georgieva ML, Debets AJ et al. 2013 – Are alkalitolerant fungi of the Emericellopsis lineage (Bionectriaceae) of marine origin? IMA Fungus 4, 213–228.
Jørgensen C. 1922 – Heleococcum aurantiacum n. gen. et n. spec. Botanisk Tidsskrift 37, 417–420.
Perera RH, Hyde KD, Jones EBG, Maharachchikumbura SSN et al. 2023 – Profile of Bionectriaceae, Calcarisporiaceae, Hypocreaceae, Nectriaceae, Tilachlidiaceae, Ijuhyaceae fam. nov., Stromatonectriaceae fam. nov. and Xanthonectriaceae fam. nov. Fungal Diversity 118, 95–271.
Rehner SA, Samuels GJ. 1995 – Molecular systematics of the Hypocreales: a teleomorph gene phylogeny and the status of their anamorphs. Canadian Journal of Botany 73, 816–823.
Udagawa SI, Uchiyama S, Kamiya S. 1995 – Two new species of Heleococcum with Acremonium anamorphs. Mycoscience 36, 37–43.
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