Petriella ulmi, sp. nov., a new synnematous fungal species of Microascaceae associated with bark beetle galleries on elm trees in Iran

Marzieh Mehrabioon-Mohammadi, Mahdi Arzanlou & Ilaria Pertot

Sydowia 75: 111-118

Published online on December 13th, 2022

In a survey of fungal species associated with bark beetle galleries and decline symptoms on elm trees in northwestern zone
of Iran, synnematous fungal isolates were recovered from bark beetle galleries on declining elm trees in the Tabriz, Bostan Abad
and the Zanjan regions. A phylogeny inferred based on combined LSU-rDNA and ITS-rDNA sequence data, clustered our isolate
in a separate lineage within the genus Petriella in the family Microascaceae. Integration of molecular phylogeny with cultural
and morphological characteristics differentiated our Petriella isolates as novel species for science. Petriella ulmi, sp. nov. can be
distinguished from the other known species in this genus based on its unique phylogenetic position and morphological features
of its conidia. The host range, pathogenicity and geographical distribution of this species remain to be studied.

Keywords: classification, elm, Microascaceae, multi-gene phylogeny, systematics.

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