''Chlamydosauromyces punctatus'' is the sole species in the monotypic genus of fungi, ''Chlamydosauromyces'' in the family, Onygenaceae. It was found in the skin shed from frilled lizard. This fungus is

mesophilic A mesophile is an organism that grows best in moderate temperature, neither too hot nor too cold, with an optimum growth range from . The optimum growth temperature for these organisms is 37°C. The term is mainly applied to microorganisms. Organi ...

and digests hair. It reproduces both sexually and asexually. The fungus has so far not been reported to be pathogenic.

Growth and reproduction

Colonies of ''C.'' ''punctatus'' are yellow in the center and relatively flat surface at the pale peripherals with a central bump. This fungus is

mesophile A mesophile is an organism that grows best in moderate temperature, neither too hot nor too cold, with an optimum growth range from . The optimum growth temperature for these organisms is 37°C. The term is mainly applied to microorganisms. Organi ...

and grows at , but does not grow above . This fungus also shows digestion of hairs after 14 days ''in vitro.'' The keratinolytic, or keratin-digesting, capability is one of the characteristics of Onygenaceae. It is also

cycloheximide Cycloheximide is a naturally occurring fungicide produced by the bacterium ''Streptomyces griseus''. Cycloheximide exerts its effects by interfering with the translocation step in protein synthesis (movement of two tRNA molecules and mRNA in rela ...

resistant. ''C. punctatus'' can reproduce both in sexual and asexual forms. The teleomorph phase is gymnothecial and arises through a homothallic mating system. Ascomata of this species are round, 200–600 μm in diameter containing

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 ...

7–9 (10) μm in length. Ascospores are yellow, 4–4.5 × 3–3.5 μm in diameter. The ascospores look like pitted smarties or pulley wheels, which is characteristics of Onygenaceae. ''Chlamydosauromyces punctatus'' has branched, narrow, smooth-walled, yellow

hypha A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one or ...

e, 1.5–2.5 μm in width with thin-walled septa. Peripheral

e are poorly differentiated and this is the reason that ''C. punctatus'' was once considered in the

Gymnoascaceae The Gymnoascaceae are a family of fungi in the Ascomycota, class Eurotiomycetes Eurotiomycetes is a large class of ascomycetes with cleistothecial ascocarps within the subphylum Pezizomycotina, currently containing around 3810 species accordi ...

. Ascomata lack elongate appendages. The cells initiating

anastomosis An anastomosis (, plural anastomoses) is a connection or opening between two things (especially cavities or passages) that are normally diverging or branching, such as between blood vessels, leaf#Veins, leaf veins, or streams. Such a connection m ...

are slightly swollen.

Taxonomy

''Chlamydosauromyces'' is a monotypic genus, which has only single species in the family, Onygenaceae. However, it was initially thought to be affiliated with the family

because it possesses ascospores with equatorial grooves, a common feature of the Gymnoascaceae not normally found in the Onygenaceae.

As well, hyphae of this species are sparsely differentiated similar to those of the genus ''

Arachniotus ''Arachniotus'' is a genus of fungi 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 cl ...

'' (Gymnoascaceae). Molecular genetic analyses demonstrated the affiliation of this fungus to the Onygenaceae. The genus ''Chlamydosauromyces'' was named after the frilled lizard, ''Chlamydosaurus kingii'' and the species epithet '''punctatus was selected in reference to the pitted ornamentation of the ascospores. The name ''Chlamydosauromyces punctatus'' is a Latin masculine name. Small subunit (SSU) region in the nuclear ribosomal gene of ''C. punctatus'' is 1,738 nucleotides in length. Phylogenic study based on the sequence have shown '' Renispora flavissima'' to be the closest related taxon. Both are treated within the Ongenaceae and share similar characteristics such as the yellow color, thin walls, narrow ascomata, and ascospores with pitted walls. Even though these two species are the most closely related to each other, the bootstrap value was low (78%), indicating that the phylogenic similarity is not particularly high. In addition to the phylogenic distance, there are notable morphological differences between the genus ''Chlamydosauromyces'' and ''

Renispora ''Renispora'' is a genus of fungi within the Onygenaceae family. References External links *Renispora' at Index Fungorum ''Index Fungorum'' is an international project to index all formal names (scientific names) in the fungus kingdom. th ...

''. the hyphae of ''Chlamydosauromyces'' are subhyaline whereas those of ''

'' are hyaline or translucent. Moreover, ''

'' has liver-shaped ascospores, but ascospores of ''Chlamydosauromyces'' look like pulley wheels. In addition to the morphological differences between two species of fungi, the

conidia A conidium ( ; ), sometimes termed an asexual chlamydospore or chlamydoconidium (), is an asexual, non-motile spore of a fungus. The word ''conidium'' comes from the Ancient Greek word for dust, ('). They are also called mitospores due to the ...

of the ''

Chrysosporium ''Chrysosporium'' is a genus of hyaline hyphomycetes fungi in the family Onygenaceae. ''Chrysosporium'' colonies are moderately fast-growing, flat, white to tan to beige in color; they often have a powdery or granular surface texture. Hyaline, ...

anamorph In mycology, the terms teleomorph, anamorph, and holomorph apply to portions of the life cycles of fungi in the phyla Ascomycota and Basidiomycota: *Teleomorph: the sexual reproductive stage (morph), typically a fruiting body. *Anamorph: an ase ...

of ''Renispora'' are large with spiny tubercules and formed on stalks whereas ''Chlamydosauromyces'' produces an asexual state characterized by alternate arthroconidia.

Ecology

''Chlamydosauromyces punctatus'' was first found in the putatively healthy Squamate reptiles free of cutaneous lesions. The fungus was first isolated in 2001 from the shed skin of a 7-year-old healthy male frilled lizard, ''

Chlamydosaurus kingii The frilled lizard (''Chlamydosaurus kingii''), also known as the frill-necked lizard or frilled dragon, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. It is native to northern Australia and southern New Guinea. This species is the only member o ...

'', from the San Diego Zoo (the lizard typically lives in trees found in the northern part of the Australia). Among samples of three different Squamate reptiles donated by the Zoo, the skin samples of two of the reptile species did not show any evidence of invasion by the fungus. The ex-type strain of ''C. punctatus'' is in depository a
UAMH 9990.
ref name="UAMHCollectionCatagogue" /> Though unique to reptiles, this species is distinct from the commonly associated fungal pathogens of reptiles. ''C. punctatus'' is associated with the shed skin of healthy lizards free of lesions or symptoms.

References

{{Taxonbar , from = Q5102727 Onygenales Monotypic Eurotiomycetes genera Taxa described in 2002