''Paralepistopsis acromelalga'' is a

basidiomycete Basidiomycota () is one of two large divisions that, together with the Ascomycota, constitute the subkingdom Dikarya (often referred to as the "higher fungi") within the kingdom Fungi. Members are known as basidiomycetes. More specifically, Basi ...

fungus A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from th ...

in the

Tricholomataceae The Tricholomataceae are a large family of mushrooms within the Agaricales. Originally a classic "wastebasket taxon", the family included any white-, yellow-, or pink-spored genera in the Agaricales not already classified as belonging to e.g. the ...

family. It was formerly classified as ''Clitocybe'' ''acromelalga''.

Taxonomy

It was first described in 1918 by the mycologist T. Ichimura and classified as ''Clitocybe'' ''acromelalga''. The '' Paralepistopsis'' genus was created in 2012 by the Italian mycologist

Alfredo Vizzini Alfredo (, ) is a cognate of the Anglo-Saxon name Alfred and a common Italian, Galician, Portuguese and Spanish language personal name. People with the given name include: *Alfredo (born 1946), Brazilian footballer born as Alfredo Mostarda Fil ...

to better classify two rare toxic species formerly located in the ''

Clitocybe ''Clitocybe'' is a genus of mushrooms characterized by white, off-white, buff, cream, pink, or light-yellow spores, gills running down the stem, and pale white to brown or lilac coloration. They are primarily saprotrophic, decomposing forest grou ...

'' genus and this species was subsequently reclassified.

Habitat and distribution

It has been found in Japan and South Korea.

Toxicity

It was discovered to be poisonous in 1918, when symptoms of

mushroom poisoning Mushroom poisoning is poisoning resulting from the ingestion of mushrooms that contain toxic substances. Its symptoms can vary from slight gastrointestinal discomfort to death in about 10 days. Mushroom toxins are secondary metabolites produced by ...

occurred within three days of consumption. It had been mistaken for the edible tawny funnel cap (''

Paralepista flaccida ''Paralepista flaccida'' (also called ''Clitocybe flaccida'', ''Clitocybe inversa'', ''Lepista flaccida'' and ''Lepista inversa'', or in English tawny funnel cap) is a species of mushroom found across the Northern Hemisphere. It is known to form f ...

'' formerly ''Lepista flaccida''). Consumption of a related species, '' Paralepistopsis amoenolens'', from France has resulted in the same condition. That species is commonly known as the paralysis cap and has been shown to contain acromelic acids including acromelic acid A which is a potent neurotoxin with a chemical formula of C₁₃H₁₄N₂O₇ and is associated with causing paralysis and seizures

References

Tricholomataceae Paralepistopsis Poisonous fungi Fungi of Asia {{Tricholomataceae-stub