''Aspergillus aculeatus'' is a fungus species in the genus ''
Aspergillus
' () is a genus consisting of several hundred mold species found in various climates worldwide.
''Aspergillus'' was first catalogued in 1729 by the Italian priest and biologist Pier Antonio Micheli. Viewing the fungi under a microscope, Miche ...
''. It has been implicated as the causative agent in plant disease. ''A. aculeatus'' belongs to the group of black ''Aspergilli'' which are important industrial workhorses.
[Pariza, M. W.; Foster, E. M. Determining the Safety of Enzymes Used in Food Processing.] ''A. aculeatus'' belongs to the ''Nigri'' section.
''Aspergillus aculeatus'' is considered to be a ubiquitous species that could be usually isolated from rotting fruits and soil. Morphological characteristics such a color, size, shape and ornamentation of conidia are crucial for the classification of strains of black-spored ''Aspergillu''s species. Modern biochemical and molecular identification techniques are helpful in the identification of ''Aspergillus'' isolates, as black-spored ''Aspergillus'' species may have significant variations in their morphological and physiological characteristics.
''Aspergillus'' can rapidly degrade cell walls of plants they infect, and isolates of ''A. aculeatus'' have been used to produce a number of important
industrial enzymes Industrial enzymes are enzymes that are commercially used in a variety of industries such as pharmaceuticals, chemical production, biofuels, food & beverage, and consumer products. Due to advancements in recent years, biocatalysis through isolat ...
, including cellulases, hemicellulases and proteases. These by-products are broadly used in the food and feed industries.
Due to its industrial value, the biochemical and catalytic properties of several hydrolases from ''A. aculeatus'' have been extensively studied. Also, structural studies using X-ray crystallography have been carried out on several polysaccharide degrading enzymes from ''Aspergillus aculeatus''. (Luis M. Chong L.)
The genome of ''A. aculeatus'' was sequenced and published in 2010. The genome assembly size was 36.01
Mbp.
References
* ''Aspergillus'' ''japonicus'' var. ''aculeatus'' (Iizuka) Al-Musallam, Revision of the black'' Aspergillus'' species: 30 (1980)
** ''Aspergillus yezoensis'' Y. Sasaki, Journal of the Faculty of Agriculture of the Hokkaido Imperial University 49: 144 (1950)
* ''Aspergillus aculeatus'' Iizuka 1953, J. Agric. Chem. Soc. Japan 27:807.
* Characterization of ''Aspergillus aculeatus'' β-glucosidase 1 accelerating cellulose hydrolysis with ''Trichoderma'' cellulase system. Baba, Y., J. Sumitani, S. Tani, and T. Kawaguchi. 2015. AMB Express 5:3.
External links
USDA ARS Fungal Database
Fungal plant pathogens and diseases
Aculeatus
Fungi described in 1953
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