ARS | Publication request: Aspergillus section Versicolores, nine new species and multilocus DNA sequence based phylogeny

Submitted to: IMA Fungus
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: June 7, 2012
Publication Date: June 29, 2012
Citation: Jurjevic, Z., Peterson, S.W., Horn, B.W. 2012. Aspergillus section Versicolores, nine new species and multilocus DNA sequence based phylogeny. IMA Fungus. 3(1):59-79.

Interpretive Summary: The mold Aspergillus versicolor is known world-wide, and plays an important role in “sick building syndrome”, food spoilage, human and animal disease and it makes the poisonous compound sterigmatocystin. We examined this variable species and found through phylogenetic analysis that Aspergillus versicolor is a species complex containing 14 total distinct species. In this communication we provide descriptions and names for those new species and describe how to distinguish them. This information will be useful to medical clinicians, building hygiene practitioners, toxicologists and academic mycologists.

Technical Abstract: ß-tubulin, calmodulin, internal transcribed spacer and partial lsu-rDNA, RNA polymerase, DNA replication licensing factor Mcm7, and pre-rRNA processing protein Tsr1 were amplified and sequenced from 62 A. versicolor clade isolates and analyzed phylogenetically using the concordance model to establish species boundaries. We used phylogeny to define species limits, and we used phenotypes from 10d CYA cultures to describe the species. Aspergillus austroafricanus, A. creber, A. cvjetkovicii, A. fructus, A. jensenii, A. puulaauensis, A. subversicolor, A. tennesseensis and A. venenatus are described as new species and A. amoenus, A. protuberus, A. tabacinus and A. versicolor are accepted as distinct species on the basis of molecular and phenotypic differences. PCR primer pairs used to detect A. versicolor in sick building syndrome studies have a positive reaction for all, except two, of the newly described species.