''Metarhizium pinghaense'' is a species of

entomopathogenic fungus An entomopathogenic fungus is a fungus that can kill or seriously disable insects. Typical life cycle These fungi usually attach to the external body surface of insects in the form of microscopic spores (usually asexual, mitosporic spores also ...

in the family

Clavicipitaceae The Clavicipitaceae are a family of fungi within the order Hypocreales. A 2008 estimate placed 43 genera in the family, but recent work has increased this number to 97. Phylogeny Molecular phylogenetic analysis of multigene DNA sequence data ...

. Some authorities have it as a synonym of ''

Metarhizium anisopliae ''Metarhizium robertsii'' formerly known as ''M. anisopliae'', and even earlier as ''Entomophthora anisopliae'' (basionym) is a fungus that grows naturally in soils throughout the world and causes disease in various insects by acting as a paras ...

''. DNA studies show that it is a good species, with strong bootstrap support. Researchers in

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...

have created a strain of ''M. metarhizium'' genetically engineered to produce the venom of an Australian

funnel-web spider Funnel-web spider refers to many different species of spider, particularly those that spin a web in the shape of a funnel: * spiders in the family Agelenidae, including ** '' Hololena curta'' * funnel-web tarantulas (suborder Mygalomorphae): ** ...

; exposure to the fungus caused populations of

anopheles ''Anopheles'' () is a genus of mosquito first described and named by J. W. Meigen in 1818. About 460 species are recognised; while over 100 can transmit human malaria, only 30–40 commonly transmit parasites of the genus ''Plasmodium'', which c ...

mosquitoes, which spread

malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...

, to crash by 99% in a controlled trial.

References

External links

Clavicipitaceae Hypocreales genera Biological pest control Fungi described in 1996 {{Hypocreales-stub