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Author Spotlight: Evaluation of Entomopathogenic Fungi in Wild Monochamus alternatus Populations for Biocontrol Applications in Forest Wood Borers

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Early-diverging wood-decaying fungi detected using three complementary sampling methods.

Takashi Shirouzu¹, Kunihiko Uno¹, Kentaro Hosaka¹

¹Department of Botany, National Museum of Nature and Science, Amakubo 4-1-1, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0005, Japan.

Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution

|February 7, 2016

Summary

Investigating wood-decaying fungi diversity requires multiple methods. Combining environmental DNA analysis and culturing best detects novel fungal lineages, crucial for understanding mushroom evolution.

Keywords:

Complementary approach Culture Environmental DNA Fruiting body Wood-decaying fungi rRNA gene

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Area of Science:

Mycology
Ecology
Evolutionary Biology

Background:

Wood-decaying fungi are vital for forest ecosystem decomposition.
Species diversity and ecological roles of these fungi are poorly understood.
Current methods (fruiting body collection, culturing, environmental DNA) have limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

To compare the effectiveness of three methods for characterizing fungal diversity.
To investigate the diversity of wood-decomposing Dacrymycetes using a combined approach.
To identify an optimal strategy for discovering novel fungal lineages.

Main Methods:

Fruiting body collection: direct observation and sampling.
Culturing: isolating and growing fungi in vitro.
Environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis: sequencing DNA from environmental samples.
Complementary approach: integrating data from all three methods.

Main Results:

A total of 25 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were detected across the three methods.
Environmental DNA analysis identified the most OTUs (16), followed by fruiting body collection (11) and culturing (10).
Culturing and eDNA analysis revealed three early-diverging lineages missed by fruiting body collection, highlighting undiscovered diversity.

Conclusions:

No single method fully captures fungal diversity; complementary approaches are essential.
Environmental DNA and culturing are superior for detecting lineages lacking observable fruiting bodies.
A combined eDNA survey followed by culturing is recommended for efficient discovery of early-diverging lineages and understanding fungal evolution.