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Prof. C.V. Subramanian, a doyen of Mycology in India - A dedication on his 90th Birthday* D. J. Bhat1 and B.P.R. Vittal2 1128/1-J, Azad Housing Society, Curca, P.O. Goa Velha-403108, India 2B-16, Sivakami Flats, 25 Sivakamipuram Ist Street, Chennai-600041, India Chirayathumadom Venkatachalaier Subramanian, affectionately referred to as CVS, is an internationally renowned and most distinguished mycologist of our country. We deem it a rare honour to present a brief profile on the life and work of this great personality on the eve of his 90th birthday, in Kavaka - the transactions of Mycological Society of India, founded by him in 1973.
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Exploitation of phytopathogenic fungal diversity for the development of bioherbicides K.R. Aneja Chairman, Vaidyanath Research Training and Diagnostic Centre, Kurukshetra-136118, Haryana, India Formerly Professor & Chairman, Department of Microbiology, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra-136119 Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Presidential address delivered at the 40th Annual General Meeting of the Mycological Society of India held at Centre of Advanced study in Marine Biology, Annamalai University, Parangipettai, Tamil Nadu
At the very outset I would like to thank the members of the Executive Committee and all the members of Mycological Society of India for the honour they have bestowed upon me by electing me the President of the Society for 2013-14. I consider this a great privilege and elated to be the President of an old, prestigious society whose foundation was laid in the year 1973. I am lucky to have been associated with the Society since 1976 when I was a research student. I owe a gratitude to my teacher Prof. R.S. Mehrotra, a leading mycologist and plant pathologist, for developing interest to work on biodiversity of fungi. I have chosen the topic of my today’s talk not because of my long association with the subject of biocontrol of weeds with fungal pathogens and fungal diversity but to stimulate research in the applied area so that budding scientists working in diverse areas, such as weed science, plant pathology, fungal diversity, biotechnology, microbiology and environmental science, could bring out novel products for controlling weeds by using biocontrol agents and reducing the dependence on chemical herbicides.
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First report of Astraeus odoratus from India Manoj E. Hembrom1, Arvind Parihar2, María. P. Martín3, Roy Watling4 and Kanad Das2* 1Botanical Survey of India, Central National Herbarium, Howrah 711103, India 2Botanical Survey of India, Cryptogamic Unit, Howrah 711103, India 3Real Jardín Botánico, RJB-CSIC, Plaza de Murillo 228014, Madrid, Spain 4Caledonian Mycological Enterprises, 26 Blinkbonny Avenue, Edinburgh, EH4 3HU, UK Corresponding author E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in March, 2014 ; Accepted on July 01, 2014) ABSTRACT Astraeus odoratus which can be separated from allied taxa by non-hygroscopic nature of the exoperidium, basidiospores with very high ornamentation and the very thick exoperidial layer with irregular and exceptionally thick-walled cells is reported for the first time from India along with its morphological features, photographic illustrations and the barcoding ITS1 nrDNA sequence.
Keywords: Diplocystidiaceae, ectomycorrhizae, Jharkhand, taxonomy, India
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Two new species of Agaricus (Agaricaceae, Agaricales) collected on dung from Punjab, India Amandeep Kaur*, N.S. Atri and Munruchi Kaur *Desh Bhagat College of Education, Bardwal-Dhuri-148024, Punjab, India. Department of Botany, Punjabi University, Patiala-147002, Punjab, India. *Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in February, 2014 ; Accepted on July 03, 2014) ABSTRACT In this paper illustrated taxonomic account of two new species of Agaricus L.:Fr., namely A. stellatus-cuticus and A. flavistipus, of family Agaricaceae have been given. A. stellatus-cuticus was collected growing on sheep dung among plant debris from Sangrur district and A. flavistipus was located growing on buffalo dung from Faridkot district of Punjab state in India. A. stellatus-cuticus is characterized by radially splitted cuticle which gives stellate appearance on the pileus surface, unchanging context when cut or bruised and browning pileus context in 3% KOH. A. flavistipus has concentrically arranged reddish brown pileal scales, stipe surface staining yellowish brown where bruised and pileus context not yellowing in 3% KOH. Both the species have campestroid carpophores, brown spore print, sterile gill edges and pileus surface giving negative Schaeffer’s reaction.
Key words: Agaricomycetes, Basidiomycota, mushrooms, Schaeffer’s reaction, taxonomy.
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Four new records of the genus Hyphoderma Wallr. from Punjab Gurpreet Kaur, Harminder Kaur, Avneet Pal Singh* and G. S. Dhingra Department of Botany, Punjabi University, Patiala 147002 *Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in January, 2014 ; Accepted on July 15, 2014) ABSTRACT An illustrated account of four species of the genus Hyphoderma (H. argillaceum, H. bicystidiatum, H. lapponicum and H. setigerum)based on collections made from Punjab has been given. All the four species are being reported as new records for the state of Punjab.
Keywords: Basidiomycota, Agaricomycetes, Meruliaceae, Corticioid fungi
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Eight new records of poroid fungi from Western Ghats of Pune District (Maharashtra) Kiran Ramchandra Ranadive Department of Botany, Waghire College, Saswad, Tal-Purandar, Maharashtra, India Corresponding author E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on July 15, 2014) ABSTRACT A total of 8 species of poroid fungi, namely Trametes leonina, Hexagonia caperata, Inonotus cuticularis, Daedalea flavida, Polyporus alveolaris, Polyporus tricholoma, Rigidoporus ulmarius and Polyporus grammocephalus are being reported for the first time from Maharashtra.
Keywords- Polyporaceae, Hymenochaetaceae, fungi, Maharashtra, Pune, Western Ghats
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Introduction to extremophilic fungi T. Satyanarayana Department of Microbiology, University of Delhi, South Campus, New Delhi-110021 Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Thermophilic fungi: Their ecology and biocatalysts Bijender Singh1* and T. Satyanarayana2 1Department of Microbiology, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak-124001, India 2Department of Microbiology, University of Delhi South Campus, Benito Juarez Road, New Delhi-110021, India *Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on June 20, 2014)
ABSTRACT Thermophilic fungi represent an important group of extremophilic microbes inhabiting various natural and man-made habitats including composts, wood chip piles, nesting material of birds and other animals, municipal refuse and several others, and therefore, they are ubiquitous in their occurrence. The fungi that are capable of optimal growth at or beyond 40 °C are defined as thermophilic fungi, which form a diverse group of fungi capable of growth at elevated temperatures up to 60 oC. These fungi are capable of degrading organic materials efficiently with the help of extracellular enzymes with unique and desired properties suitable for various biotechnological applications. The enzymes are also useful in the treatment of industrial wastes and effluents that are rich in oil, heavy metals, anti-nutritional factors (e.g. phytic acid) and biomass conversion. The presence of genes encoding hydrolytic enzymes in the genomes of thermophilic fungi is an evidence for the decomposing potential of these fungi. Thermophilic fungi and their biocatalysts aid in environmental pollution management and play an important and critical role in mushroom composting. The utility of their biocatalysts in generating sugars from the bioconversion of agroresidues and their fermentation to biofuels is a major venture in the field of biotechnology. This article focuses on the ecology and biocatalysts of thermophilic fungi.
Keywords: Thermophilic fungi, hot environments, biocatalysts, biomass conversion, biofuels, genome
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Thermophilic fungi: Diversity and significance in composting Seema Rawat1 and B.N. Johri2* 1Department of Botany and Microbiology, H.N.B. Garhwal (Central) University, Srinagar, Pauri Garhwal, U.K. 2 Department of Biotechnology, Barkatullah University, Bhopal, M.P. Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on June 25, 2014)
ABSTRACT Composting is the process of decomposition of organic matter by a mixed population of microorganisms in a warm, moist and aerobic environment. It involves complex physico-chemical interactions between the organic matter and decomposer resulting in the end product which can be utilized as fertilizer, substrates for mushroom production or biogas. The active component mediating the biodegradation and conversion process during composting is resident microbial community which exhibits a successional pattern with the change in physico-chemical conditions of compost. It begins with mesophilic microflora and culminates with thermophilic microflora. Torula-Humicola complex, Myriococcum thermophilum, Papulospora thermophila, Rhizomucor miehei, Sporotrichum thermophile, Stilbella thermophila, Talaromyces thermophilus, Thermoascus aurantiacus and Thielavia terrestris are some of the important components of compost. Thermophilic fungi, constituting the climax and also the dominant component, play a pivotal role in decomposition of plant residues and contribute significantly to the quality of compost mainly by providing selectivity to it. This necessitates the monitoring and characterization of the thermophilic fungal community composition, patterns and dynamics of species diversity at spatial scales. The recent use of metagenomic approaches has given new insights in identification of population structure and in situ functionality of each component which plays an important decisive role in successful colonization and succession in compost. The knowledge of complete spectrum of thermophilic fungi would help in manipulating compost environment and hastening the process of composting besides improving the quality of compost.
Keywords: Composting, mesophilic microflora, thermophilic microflora, climax community, metagenomic approaches, Torula–Humicola complex
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Potential biotechnological applications of Phytases from thermophilic moulds Harshul Arora1, Bijender Singh2 and T. Satyanarayana1* 1Department of Microbiology, University of Delhi, South campus, New Delhi-110021 2Department of Microbiology, M.D. University, Rohtak-124001 (Haryana) *Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on June 25, 2014) ABSTRACT Phytase (myo-inositol hexakisphosphate phosphohydrolase) catalyzes the hydrolysis of phytic acid to myo-inositol and inorganic phosphate in a step-wise manner. Varied amount of phytic acid is present in food and feeds and acts as an antinutrient. Its reduction by enzymatic methods is, therefore, preferred because the physical and chemical methods of removal negatively affect nutritional value of foods. Phytase find applications in food and feed industries for decreasing the phytic acid content, liberating inorganic phosphate, improving digestibility by mitigating antinutritional factor and as therapeutics. Feed pelleting involves treatment at 80-85 ºC for a few seconds, and therefore, a thermostable phytase is in demand. Although a large number of microorganisms have been reported to produce phytase, thermophilic fungi produce thermostable phytases with resistance to denaturants. This review focuses on the production, characterization and biotechnological applications of native and recombinant phytases of thermophilic moulds.
Keywords: Thrmostable phytase, phytic acid, thermophilic moulds, anti-nutritional factor, phosphorus pollution, plant growth promotion
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Extremophilic fungal chitinases: properties and perspectives Bharti Rohatgi and T. Satyanarayana* Department of Microbiology, University of Delhi, South Campus, New Delhi-110021 *Corresponding author E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on June 28, 2014) Abstract Extremophiles survive and grow in extreme environments formerly considered hostile for life. These fungi have developed strategies to withstand harsh conditions. Due to their extreme stability, the proteins or extremozymes from these organisms offer new opportunities for biocatalysis. The wide spectrum of applications of chitin derivatives in various fields ranging from medicine to cosmetics makes the exploration of extremophilic chitinases necessary. This review summarizes the recent developments on the characterization of extremophilic chitinases and the success in cloning and expression of their genes. Keywords : Chitinase, fungi, GH family 18, extremozymes, thermophiles, chitooligomers
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Yeast diversity, adaptation and thermotolerance Shaik Naseeruddin, Jyosthna Khanna Goli and Linga Venkateswar Rao* Department of Microbiology, Osmania University, Hyderabad-500 007 *Corresponding author E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in November, 2013 ; Accepted on June 15, 2014) Abstract Yeasts are a group of microbes that are distributed among Basidiomycota and Ascomycota phyla of fungal kingdom. The yeasts are having considerable importance in the field of agriculture, economics and medicine. It is estimated that till today about 99% of the potential diversity of this group of eukaryotic microorganisms is yet to be studied. Fast growth of global economics due to industrialization and also global warming has changed the present scenario of the industry and switching them towards eco-friendly processes. There is thus an increasing interest globally to discover new microbial species for economical exploitation that necessitates understanding their biodiversity, adaptation, ecological role and importance. Biodiversity of yeast not only provides the catalogue of life on earth, but their characterization and identification help in understanding the potential use of these eukaryotic organisms in the production of novel biochemicals and enzymes useful in the pharmaceutical, agriculture, food, cosmetics and chemical industries. This review focuses on the diversity of yeast and their adaptation with special emphasis on thermo tolerance, mechanism and its applications.
Keywords: Yeast, biodiversity, adaptation, ecology, thermotolerance, bioethanol.
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Gut anaerobic fungi: the extremophilic colonizers of plant fibres in the rumen Shyam Sundar Paul, Anil Kumar Puniya* and Gareth Wyn Griffith** Central Institute for Research on Buffaloes, Sirsa Road, Hisar - 125001, India *National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal - 132001, India **Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, SY23 3DD, UK *Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in November, 2013 ; Accepted on June 20, 2014) Abstract Anaerobic rumen fungi are strict anaerobes that inhabit the rumen and hindgut of herbivores and play a catalytic role in microbe-dependent fibre digestion in the gut. Among different gut microbes, anaerobic rumen fungi possess the most potent varieties of complex plant cell-wall degrading enzymes having the unique ability to break and penetrate the cuticle of fibrous feed particles through penetration of rhizoids. These are the very first colonizers of fibrous feeds and act as a biological scissor to break fibre particles apart, which helps the rumen bacteria to access the secondary cell-wall of feed particles. Though, the rumen fungi make up only 5 to 10% of total microbial biomass but their exclusion from the rumen causes nearly 30% reduction in digestion of fibre that confirms their key role in the anaerobic digestion of fibre in the rumen. These can degrade non-lignified plant cell-wall completely and preferably colonize on lignified areas of fibre and release the phenolic monomers. Based on the ultra structural characteristics of zoospores, anaerobic rumen fungi were assigned to the order of Spizellomycetales in the family Neocallimasticaceae. Similarly based on the type of thallus development, anaerobic rumen fungi were classified into monocentric and polycentric groups. The life cycle of monocentric fungi consist of an alteration between a motile zoosporic stage and a vegetative zoosporangial stage. Polycentric fungi, on the other hand, have nucleated rhizoids with an indeterminate life cycle and are not dependent upon the formation of zoospores for their continued survival. Six genera and about 20 species of anaerobic rumen fungi have so far been isolated and described, but a few more have also been recently discovered which will be reported soon. Based on the analysis of ITS sequences available in public databases (including those from culture independent studies), the presence of many new genera and species have been suggested. The gut fungi are difficult to maintain and even brief exposure to traces of oxygen (>10ppm) can kill them making it tedious to work with them. These are also reported to have a resting oxygen resistant spore like stage in natural condition that helps them survive in faeces for longer and thus transfer from one animal to another. Developing such an oxygen resistant resting stage in vitro has not, however, been successful. Since relatively little is known about the physiology of this novel group of anaerobes, further efforts are called for increasing our understanding about their exact function, biology and genetic makeup, besides their ecological interaction with other microbes in the gut.
Keywords: Anaerobic fungi, rumen, fibre digestion, herbivores, extremophiles
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Psychrophilic and psychotolerant mycelial fungi Parvinder Kaur2, Swati Joshi1, and T. Satyanarayana1* 1Department of Microbiology, University of Delhi South Campus, New Delhi - 110021, India 2 Department of Microbiology, Swami Shraddhanand College, Alipur, New Delhi - 110036, India *Corresponding author E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on 29 June, 2014) ABSTRACT A major portion of the earth’s surface is cold and inhabited by a broad diversity of microbes capable of survival and growth at low temperatures. Among these, psycrophilic and psychrotolerant filamentous fungi have a pivotal position because of their role in the ecology of cold environments. In this review, an attempt has been made to summarize the developments in understanding the diversity of filamentous fungi, their adaptations and potential biotechnological applications.
Keywords: Mycelial fungi, psychrophilic fungi, psychrotolerent fungi, psychrotrophs, cryoprotectant, cold-active enzymes
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Mycorrhizal fungi in extreme environments and their impact on plant growth Babita Khosla and M. S. Reddy* Department of Biotechnology, Thapar University, Patiala 147004, Punjab, India Corresponding author E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on 30 June, 2014) Abstract This review focusses on mycorrhizal fungi-host plant adaptation to metal-contaminated and extreme environments in order to draw conclusions on the co-evolutionary strategies for the establishment of mycorrhizal associations on such sites. Mechanisms involved in amelioration of metal toxicity by mycorrhizal fungi are discussed. Mycorrhizas present in extreme environments like fly ash, bauxite residue and mining soils and their role in promoting the vegetation are illustrated. The introduction of plants in stressed or extreme environmental sites inoculated with mycorrhizal fungi is useful in reclaiming degraded ecosystems. The mycorrhizal fungi have the potential to increase the efficiency of the plant system by providing the seedlings with essential levels of P and other nutrients for growth. Keywords: Mycorrhizal fungi, fly ash, metal toxicity, bauxite residue, revegetation, nutrient uptake
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The world of halophilic fungi Sarita W. Nazareth Department of Microbiology, Goa University, Taleigao Plateau, Goa – 403206, India Corresponding author E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in December, 2013 ; Accepted on June 29, 2014) ABSTRACT Halophilic fungi exist in hypersaline and polyhaline marine environments. Studies have shown their presence in the Dead Sea, Salt Lakes, solar salterns in different continents, as well as in deep-sea, estuary and mangroves. These have been found to belong to Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. They develop a mechanism of osmo-adaptation to the lower water activity of their environment through internal accumulation of compatible solutes. They hold much biotechnological potential.
Keywords: Extremophiles, halophiles, fungi, osmo-adaptation, compatible solutes, Aspergillus penicillioides
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Fungi living in diverse extreme habitats of the marine environment Seshagiri Raghukumar1*, Chandralata Raghukumar1 and Cathrine Sumathi Manohar2 1Myko Tech Private Limited, 313 Vainguinnim Valley, Dona Paula, Goa – 403004, India. 2CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography, Dona Paula, Goa – 403004, India. Corresponding author Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Submitted in January, 2014 ; Accepted on July 04, 2014) ABSTRACT The marine environment contains several habitats characterized by extreme living conditions. However, extremophilic marine fungi were neither well known, nor often studied. Many studies in recent years have shown that fungi do inhabit such habitats. Fungi are capable of withstanding high salinity conditions, such as those in intertidal mangrove environments and salt pans. Cold water, psychrotolerant fungi have been identified from polar waters. Numerous studies have shown that fungi grow actively in deep-sea sediments, under high hydrostatic conditions. Yeasts predominate deep-sea waters and many have also been shown to be psychrotolerant. Fungi have also been found in shallow water hydrothermal vents. Diversity studies on fungi in these habitats has shown the common presence of terrestrial species. Cryptic species and novel lineages have also been discovered . Extremophilic, or extremotolerant marine fungi could prove to be useful for biotechnological applications.
Keywords: Marine, fungi, extreme, habitats, diversity
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