''Zwackhiomyces polischukii'' is a species of lichenicolous (
lichen
A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.fungus in the family
Xanthopyreniaceae
Xanthopyreniaceae is a family of lichen-forming fungi in the order Collemopsidiales.
The family was circumscribed by lichenologist Alexander Zahlbruckner
Alexander Zahlbruckner (31 May 1860, Svätý Jur – 1938, Vienna) was an Austrian- H ...
The fungus was formally described as a new species in 2017 by Valeriy Darmostuk and Alexander Khodosovtsev. The type specimen was collected from a western slope of Mount Castel (
Autonomous Republic of Crimea
The Autonomous Republic of Crimea, commonly known as Crimea, is a de jure autonomous republic of Ukraine encompassing most of Crimea that was annexed by Russia in 2014. The Autonomous Republic of Crimea occupies most of the peninsula,
) at an altitude of ; there it was found growing on thalli of '' Bacidia rubella'', which itself was growing on ''
Carpinus betulus
''Carpinus betulus'', the European or common hornbeam, is a species of tree in the birch family Betulaceae, native to Western Asia and central, eastern, and southern Europe, including southern England. It requires a warm climate for good growth, ...
''. The species epithet ''polischukii'' honours Ukrainian virologist, professor Valeriy
Polischuk.
Description
''Zwackhiomyces polischukii'' has perithecioid ascomata that are initially immersed in the host thallus, but are only partially immersed in maturity. These small (typically 170–190
μm
The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Unit ...
in diameter) black structures are more or less spherical, and are either scattered throughout the thallus surface or roughly arranged in groups of three to five. The
asci ASCI or Asci may refer to:
* Advertising Standards Council of India
* Asci, the plural of ascus, in fungal anatomy
* Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative
* American Society for Clinical Investigation
* Argus Sour Crude Index
* Association of ...
are club-shaped (''clavate'') and measure 65–75 by 12–15.0 μm. They usually have eight spores (some have four), with the spores either lined up in a single row (''uniseriate'') or in two rows (''biseriate''). Ascospores are
hyaline
A hyaline substance is one with a glassy appearance. The word is derived from el, ὑάλινος, translit=hyálinos, lit=transparent, and el, ὕαλος, translit=hýalos, lit=crystal, glass, label=none.
Histopathology
Hyaline cartilage is ...
,
ellipsoid
An ellipsoid is a surface that may be obtained from a sphere by deforming it by means of directional scalings, or more generally, of an affine transformation.
An ellipsoid is a quadric surface; that is, a surface that may be defined as the ...
with a marked constriction at the single
septum
In biology, a septum (Latin for ''something that encloses''; plural septa) is a wall, dividing a cavity or structure into smaller ones. A cavity or structure divided in this way may be referred to as septate.
Examples
Human anatomy
* Interatri ...
hosts
A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it.
Host may also refer to:
Places
*Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County
People
*Jim Host (born 1937), American businessman
*Michel Host ( ...
for ''Zwackhiomyces polischukii''. The authors suggest that the association between these species ranges from parasymbiotic (i.e., the lichen supports a fungal species growing in close association with it, without apparent disadvantage) to weakly parasitic, because the fungal presence does not seem to greatly affect the host, causing only slight deformations in the thallus. In one of the recorded cases, a second lichenicolous fungus–'' Muellerella hospitans''–was co-infecting the host.
In addition to Crimea, ''Zwackhiomyces polischukii'' has also been recorded in
Bakhchysarai
Bakhchysarai ( crh, Bağçasaray, italic=yes; russian: Бахчисара́й; ua, Бахчисара́й; tr, Bahçesaray) is a town in Crimea, a territory recognized by a majority of countries as part of Ukraine and annexed by Russia as the Re ...
, where the host lichen was growing on oak, and from the
Podilskyi District
The Podilskyi District ( uk, Подільський район) is an urban district of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. Its population was 177,563 at the 2001 census. The district takes its name from the historic Podil neighborhood which it includ ...
, where the host lichen was growing on maple. As of 2019, ''Zwackhiomyces polischukii'' is one of 13 species of ''
Zwackhiomyces
''Zwackhiomyces'' is a genus of lichenicolous fungi in the family Xanthopyreniaceae. The genus was circumscribed by Martin Grube and Josef Hafellner in 1990, with '' Zwackhiomyces coepulonus'' assigned as the type species.
The genus name of ''Zwa ...