Morphological and phylogenetic insights reveal Cucurbitaria berberidicola (Cucurbitariaceae, Pleosporales) as a new species from Uzbekistan Author Appadoo, Michée A. 0000-0003-1796-3076 State Key Laboratory of Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang 550004, China & The High Efficacy Application of Natural Medicinal Resources Engineering Center of Guizhou Province (The Key Laboratory of Optimal Utilization of Natural Medicine Resources), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, University Town, Guian New District, Guizhou 550025, China & Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand & School of Science, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand & ahay 361 @ hotmail. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0003 - 1796 - 3076 ahay361@hotmail.com Author Wanasinghe, Dhanushka N. 0000-0003-1796-3076 Center for Mountain Futures, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Honghe County 654400, Yunnan, China Laboratory of Mycology, Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan, 32 Durmon Yuli Street, Tashkent 100125, Uzbekistan & dnadeeshan @ gmail. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0003 - 1796 - 3076 dnadeeshan@gmail.com Author Gafforov, Yusufjon 0000-0003-3076-4709 yugafforov @ yahoo. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0003 - 3076 - 4709 yugafforov@yahoo.com Author Chethana, K. W. Thilini 0000-0002-5816-9269 Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand & School of Science, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand & tchethi @ yahoo. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 5816 - 9269 tchethi@yahoo.com Author Abdurazakov, Aziz 0000-0001-9236-9638 Department of Ecology and Botany, Andijan State University ¸ 129 University Street, 170100, Andijan, Uzbekistan & abdurazakov. aziz 1986 @ gmail. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0001 - 9236 - 9638 abdurazakov.aziz1986@gmail.com Author Hyde, Kevin D. 0000-0002-2191-0762 Center of Excellence in Fungal Research, Mae Fah Luang University, Chiang Rai 57100, Thailand & Innovative Institute of Plant Health, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Haizhu District, Guangzhou 510225, P. R. China & Mushroom Research Foundation, 128 M. 3 Ban Pa Deng T. Pa Pae, A. Mae Taeng, Chiang Mai 50150, Thailand & kdhyde 3 @ gmail. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0002 - 2191 - 0762 kdhyde3@gmail.com Author Li, Qirui 0000-0001-8735-2890 State Key Laboratory of Functions and Applications of Medicinal Plants, Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang 550004, China & The High Efficacy Application of Natural Medicinal Resources Engineering Center of Guizhou Province (The Key Laboratory of Optimal Utilization of Natural Medicine Resources), School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Guizhou Medical University, University Town, Guian New District, Guizhou 550025, China & lqrnd 2008 @ 163. com; https: // orcid. org / 0000 - 0001 - 8735 - 2890 text Phytotaxa 2021 2021-08-31 518 1 1 13 journal article 4368 10.11646/phytotaxa.518.1.1 f9082e38-ffc3-4f2b-8a49-a684d82d32b4 1179-3163 5447957 Cucurbitaria berberidicola Appad., Gafforov, Abdurazakov & K.D. Hyde , sp. nov . Mycobank number: MB838444; Facesoffungi number : FoF 09890, FIGURE 2 . Etymology : Refers to the host genus Berberis . Holotype : TASM 6153 FIGURE. Cucurbitaria berberidicola (TASM 6153, holotype ). a–c . Ascomata on substrate. d . Horizontal section of an ascoma. e . Vertical section of ascoma. f . Setae. g . Pseudoparaphyses. h . Asci embedded in pseudoparaphyses. i . Pedicel of an ascus. j . Ascus tip showing ocular chamber. k–n . Ascospores. Scale bars: a = 1000 μm, b = 500 μm, c= 500 μm, d = 500 μm, e = 100 μm, f = 100 μm, g = 10 μm, h = 50 μm, i–n = 20 μm. Saprobic on dead stems of Berberis intermedia . Sexual morph : Ascomata 300–500 μm high × 300–480 μm diam. (x̅ = 360 × 358 μm, n = 5), solitary, gregarious, confluent, uniloculate, superficial, erumpent, subglobose to turbinate or pulvinate, sometimes laterally fused, black, setae on surface. Setae up to 90 μm long, 7 μm wide at the base, dark brown, septate with rounded ends. Peridium 96–173 μm (x̅ = 133 μm, n = 10) wide at base, 55–105 μm (x̅ = 74 μm, n = 10) at sides, thickest at the base which often considerably elongated, outer most layer narrow, dark brown to black, opaque, warted, middle layer brown to dark brown cells of textura angularis to textura globulosa , inner layer composed pale brown to hyaline, flattened, cells of textura angularis . Hamathecium comprising numerous, 2–3 μm (x̅ = 2.4 μm, n = 20) wide, filamentous, hyaline, septate, branched, cellular pseudoparaphyses. Asci 140–200 × 16–24 μm (x̅ = 170 × 21 μm, n = 20), bitunicate, fissitunicate, 8-spored, cylindrical, short pedicellate, apex rounded with a narrow ocular chamber. Ascospores 28–38 × 15–18 μm (x̅ = 33.5 × 16.5 μm, n = 40), overlapping uniseriate, mostly ellipsoidal, muriform, with 8–12 transverse septa, 3–4 longitudinal septa, constricted at the middle transverse septum, not constricted at remaining septa, initially hyaline, brown to dark brown at maturity, ends rounded to subacute. Asexual morph : Undetermined. Culture characteristics : Colonies on PDA slow growing, reaching 2 cm diam. after four weeks at 20 °C, circular, rough margin, dirty white from above, reverse dirty green, margin white, flat on the surface, without aerial mycelium. Hyphae septate, branched, hyaline, thin-walled. Known distribution: Berberis intermedia , Uzbekistan . Material examined : Uzbekistan , Jizzakh Region, Zaamin District, Zaamin National Nature Park, Turkestan range of Pamir-Alay Mountains, Uriklisay river, dead stems of Berberis intermedia (Berberidaceae) , 15 July 2019 , Y. Gafforov & A. Abdurazakov, YG-Z70-1 (TASM 6153, holotype ; HKAS 111925, isotype), ex-isotype living culture KUMCC 20-0253. Notes : Cucurbitaria berberidicola resembles C. berberidis in its asci and ascospore characteristics ( Doilom et al . 2013 ). Cucurbitaria berberidicola differs from C. berberidis in having less crowded ascomata which bear setae, less-warted peridium, narrower peridium base (with the widest area reaching 173 μm compared to 420 μm), and up to 12 transverse septa on its ascospores (TABLE 3). Cucurbitaria berberidicola also resembles Cucurbitaria oromediterranea but differs in the ascomatal and ascal morphology ( Jaklitsch et al . 2018 ). Cucurbitaria berberidicola bear setae on the ascomata, are less crowded and can be solitary in their distribution. Cucurbitaria berberidicola also has smaller and smoother surface ascomata, smaller peridium at the base, at the sides, and slightly shorter asci (TABLE 3), which lacks a knob-like structure at the base of the ascus stipe. TABLE. Synopsis of Cucurbitaria berberidis , C. oromediterranea and C. berberidicola .

Species	Ascomata (height × diam. μm)	Setae on ascomata	Asci (μm)	Ascospore (μm)	Host/substrate
Cucurbitaria berberidicola	300–500 × 300–480	Present	140–200 × 16–24	28–38 × 15–18 8–12 transverse septa, 3–4 longitudinal septa	Berberis intermedia
B. aquifolium B. canadensis B. ceratophylla
Cucurbitaria berberidis 1,2	(435–)500–650(–870) × 380–595	Absent	(130–)180–200(–220) × 15–20	23–32 × 9–14 (4–)7–9(–11) transverse septa 3–4 longitudinal septa	B. fendleri B. heteropoda B. nervosa B. thunbergia Berberis vulgaris B. vulgaris var. atropurpurea Mahonia aquifolium
Cucurbitaria oromediterranea 3	(300–)500–630(–650) × (300–)430–620(–750)	Absent	(144–)165–225(–260) × (14–)16–20(–22)	(22–)25–33(–40) × (9–)11–14.5(–17) (6–)7–8(–12) transverse septa 2–4 longitudinal septa	B. aetnensis B. cretica B. hispanica

1 Doilom et al. (2013) 2 Mirza (1968) 3 Jaklitsch et al. (2018) From our multi-loci phylogenetic analyses C. berberidicola positioned basal to C. oromediterranea and C. berberidis , with 98% MLBS / 100% MPBS / 1.00 BYPP bootstrap support (Figure 1). Pairwise comparisons between C. berberidicola and the ex-type strain of C. berberidis (CBS 130007) showed 3.2% (15/468), 0.25% (2/799), 8.34% (89/1067) and, 3.2% (23/718) base pair differences for ITS , LSU , rpb 2 and tef 1-α sequences, respectively.There are also 2.77% (13/468), 0.25% (2/799), 8.34% (89/1067) and 3.06% (22/718) base pair differences between C. berberidicola and ex-type strain of C. oromediterranea (CBS 142399) for ITS , LSU , rpb 2 and tef 1-α sequences, respectively.