Pestalotiopsis microspora

Pestalotiopsis microspora
Conidia
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Fungi
Phylum: Ascomycota
Class: Sordariomycetes
Subclass: Xylariomycetidae
Order: Xylariales
Family: Amphisphaeriaceae
Genus: Pestalotiopsis
Species: P. microspora
Binomial name
Pestalotiopsis microspora
(Speg.) G.C. Zhao & N. Li
Varieties

P. microspora microspora
P. microspora philippinensis

Synonyms

Pestalotia dichaeta Speg.
Pestalotia micheneri Guba
Pestalotia microspora Speg.
Pestalotiopsis dichaeta (Speg.) Steyaert

Pestalotiopsis microspora
View the Mycomorphbox template that generates the following list

Mycological characteristics

hymenium attachment is not applicable
lacks a stipe
spore print is blackish-brown
ecology is parasitic
edibility: unknown

Pestalotiopsis microspora is a species of endophytic fungus capable of breaking down and digesting polyurethane.[1] Originally identified in fallen foliage of common ivy (Hederae helicis) in Buenos Aires,[2] it also causes leaf spot in Hidcote (Hypericum patulum) shrubs in Japan.[3]

Its polyurethane degradation activity was discovered in the Yasuni National Forest within the Ecuadorian Amazonian rainforest by a group of student researchers led by molecular biochemistry professor Scott Strobel as part of Yale's annual Rainforest Expedition and Laboratory. It's the first fungus species found to be able to subsist on polyurethane in anaerobic conditions. This makes the fungus a potential candidate for bioremediation projects involving large quantities of plastic.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Jonathan R. Russell; Jeffrey Huang; Pria Anand; Kaury Kucera; Amanda G. Sandoval; Kathleen W. Dantzler; DaShawn Hickman; Justin Jee; Farrah M. Kimovec; David Koppstein; Daniel H. Marks; Paul A. Mittermiller; Salvador Joel Núñez; Marina Santiago; Maria A. Townes; Michael Vishnevetsky; Neely E. Williams; Mario Percy Núñez Vargas; Lori-Ann Boulanger; Carol Bascom-Slack & Scott A. Strobel (15 July 2011). "Biodegradation of Polyester Polyurethane by Endophytic Fungi". Applied and Environmental Microbiology. Washington, DC: American Society for Microbiology. 77 (17): 6076–6084. doi:10.1128/AEM.00521-11. ISSN 1098-5336. PMC 3165411Freely accessible. PMID 21764951. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  2. ↑ Saccardo, Pier Andrea. Sylloge fungorum omnium hucusque cognitorum (in Latin). 3. p. 789. OL 7025165M.
  3. ↑ Zhang, M.; Wu, H.Y.; Tsukiboshi, T.; Okabe, I. (August 2010). "First Report of Pestalotiopsis microspora Causing Leaf Spot of Hidcote (Hypericum patulum) in Japan". Plant Disease. 94 (8): 1064. doi:10.1094/PDIS-94-8-1064B.
  4. ↑ Anderson, Stacey (December 15, 2014). "The Plastic-Eating Fungi That Could Solve Our Garbage Problem". Newsweek. Retrieved 2015-10-26.
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