Unveiling species diversity within early-diverging fungi from China III: Six new species and a new record of Gongronella (Cunninghamellaceae, Mucoromycota) Wang, Yi-Xin Zhao, Heng Jiang, Yang Liu, Xin-Ye Tao, Meng-Fei Liu, Xiao-Yong MycoKeys 2024 2024-11-20 110 287 317 Yi Xin Wang, H. Zhao & X. Y. Liu Yi Xin Wang, H. Zhao & X. Y. Liu 2024 Mucoromycetes Cunninghamellaceae Gongronella Fungi Mucorales Zygomycota species abortosporangia sp. nov.   Fig. 2   Etymology. The epithet “ abortosporangia” (Latin) refers to the abortive sporangia.   Type.   China• Hainan Province, Lingshui Li Autonomous County, Qixian Yaochi Yexi Hot Spring(  18.70161 ° N, 109.69318 ° E), from soil sample,  10 April 2023, Yi-Xin Wang( holotype  HMAS352726, ex-holotype strain  CGMCC3.27028).   Description. Colonies growing slowly on PDAin darkness at 25 ° C, reaching 49.2–52.4 mmin diameter in seven days, white, regular at edge and cottony in the centre, reversely milky white. Rhizoids hyaline, branched, irregularly shaped, with oil droplets. Stolons absent. Sporangiophores on aerial mycelia, erect or slightly curved, unbranched or branched (1–6 times), 4.0–96.8 × 1.0–4.2 μm, hyaline, smooth, mostly aseptate, sometimes one-septate and rarely two-septate, occasionally containing a line of oil droplets. Sterile (aborted) sporangia abundant, mainly on the top of short lateral branches of sporangiophores, mostly gourd-shaped, 11.6–16.7 × 5.5–17.7 μm, partially elliptical with a slight shrinkage, 12.5–18.0 × 6.7–10.6 μm, occasionally clavate, 20.1–22.7 × 9.5–10.4 μm. Fertile sporangia hyaline or light yellow, spherical, 7.0–23.2 μm in diameter, smooth and deliquescent-walled, leaving a collar after releasing sporangiospores. Columellae mostly hemispherical, 2.5–4.2 × 3.6–7.4 μm, sometimes sub-hemispherical, 1.3–3.9 × 3.6–5.5 μm, hyaline, smooth. Apophyses hyaline, smooth, variously shaped, mostly cup-shaped, 1.9–8.6 × 2.1–6.7 μm, partially hemispherical, 2.7–5.5 × 2.8–7.4 μm, occasionally pear-shaped, 8.2 × 7.2 μm. Sporangiospores not uniform, hyaline, smooth, ovoid, 2.6–3.5 × 1.7–2.1 μm, reniform, 2.9–3.5 × 1.7–2.3 μm. Chlamydospores gourd-shaped, 20.3–29.3 × 6.4–9.3 μm. Giant cells intercalary, globular, subglobular, 2.6–4.6 μm in diameter. Zygospores not found.   Figure 2.   Gongronella abortosporangiaex-holotype  CGMCC3.27028 a, bcolonies on PDA( aobverse breverse) can unbranched sporangiophore with a mature sporangium dan unbranched sporangiophore with an immature sporangium ean aborted sporangium with two septa fcolumellae, collars and apophyses g, h, jbranched sporangiophores with sterile (aborted) sporangia ia branched sporangiophore with a mature sporangium, columellae, collars and apophyses krhizoids l, mgiant cells nsporangiospores. Scale bars: 10 μm ( c – n).   Additional specimen examined.   China• Hainan Province, Lingshui Li Autonomous County, Benhao Town(  18.70161 ° N, 109.69318 ° E), from soil sample,  10 April 2023, Yi-Xin Wang(living culture  SAUCC4064-2).   GenBank accession numbers.   CGMCC327028( ITS,  PP195847; LSU,  PP195948; TEF,  PP850088; ACT,  PP933938; RPB 1,  PP842883),  SAUCC4064-2( ITS,  PP195848; LSU,  PP195949; TEF,  PP850089; ACT,  PP933939; RPB 1,  PP842882).   Notes. Based on phylogenetic analyses of ITS+ LSU+ TEF+ ACT+ RPB 1 sequences, the two isolates of the new species  Gongronella abortosporangiaformed an independent clade with high supports ( MLBV= 100; Fig. 1), which is closely related to  G. multiramosa( BIPP= 0.95; Fig. 1). This new species differs morphologically from  G. multiramosain sporangium, septum, columella, collar and apophysis ( Wang et al. 2023a). The  G. abortosporangiais different from  G. multiramosain shape and size of sterile sporangia, the former being variously shaped, mostly gourd-shaped, 11.6–16.7 × 5.5–17.7 μm, partially elliptical with a slight shrinkage, 12.5–18.0 × 6.7–10.6 μm, occasionally clavate, 20.1–22.7 × 9.5–10.4 μm, while the latter being only ovoid, 9.6 × 6.2 µm in diameter. In fertile sporangia,  G. abortosporangiahas a smaller minimum diameter than  G. multiramosa(7.0 μm vs. 15.5 μm).  G. abortosporangiahas more septa on sporangiophores compared to  G. multiramosa(0–2 vs. 0–1). Although  G. abortosporangiais similar in shape of columellae to  G. multiramosa, it is shorter in length (hemispherical, 3.6–7.4 µm vs. 8.0–9.8 µm, sub-hemispherical, 3.6–5.5 μm vs. 7.6–10.0 µm). The  G. abortosporangiahas shorter collars than  G. multiramosa, 0.6–3.9 μm vs. 1.3–7.2 µm. The  G. abortosporangiais similar in shape of apophyses to  G. multiramosa. However, they are different from each other in main pattern and size: The former mostly cup-shaped (1.9–8.6 × 2.1–6.7 μm vs. 4.6–7.0 × 8.5–10.0 µm) and partially hemispherical (2.7–5.5 × 2.8–7.4 μm vs. 4.4–5.6 × 8.5–9.0 µm) and the latter opposite. Combining morphological and molecular phylogenetic analyses, we classified the two isolates as a new species  G. abortosporangiaallied to  G. multiramosa. 4981269313 from soil sample 2023-04-10 CGMCC Yi-Xin Wang China Lingshui Li Autonomous County 18.70161 Qixian Yaochi Yexi Hot Spring 1 109.69318 HMAS 352726, CGMCC 3.27028 1 Hainan Province holotype 4981269305 from soil sample 2023-04-10 SAUCC Yi-Xin Wang China Lingshui Li Autonomous County 18.70161 Benhao Town 1 109.69318 SAUCC 4064-2 1 Hainan Province