Ectomycorrhizal Fungi as Biofertilizers in Forestry

Ectomycorrhiza (ECM) is an association of fungi with the roots of higher plants in which both the species are equally benefited and appears to be important for the survival of both parties, and no doubt this association offered extensive benefits in the restoration of forest and ecosystem soil aggregation and stabilization. The most important and vital role of ECM fungi, which is analyzed globally, is that they are best and environment friendly biofertilizers. ECM fungi considered as a biotechnological tool in forest management because their role in reforestation, bioremediation, control of soil pathogen, and restoration of ecosystem is reviewed extensively. ECM fungi not only increase the biomass of edible fruiting bodies but also improve soil structure, nutrient cycle, and also produce phytohormones, which increase the growth and survival of seedlings and enhance the photosynthetic rate of plants and also maintain their tolerance level against environmental stresses in forest nursery. Ectomycorrhizas also reduce fertilization expenses in an environment friendly manner. The importance of ECM fungi and mycorrhizal helper bacteria for the growth enhancement of the economically important trees and significantly important role in restoration of sites degraded by forestry operation

Fungal systematics and evolution : FUSE 6

Fungal Systematics and Evolution (FUSE) is one of the journal series to address the “fusion” between morphological data and molecular phylogenetic data and to describe new fungal taxa and interesting observations. This paper is the 6th contribution in the FUSE series—presenting one new genus, twelve new species, twelve new country records, and three new combinations. The new genus is: Pseudozeugandromyces (Laboulbeniomycetes, Laboulbeniales). The new species are: Albatrellopsis flettioides from Pakistan, Aureoboletus garciae from Mexico, Entomophila canadense from Canada, E. frigidum from Sweden, E. porphyroleucum from Vietnam, Erythrophylloporus flammans from Vietnam, Marasmiellus boreoorientalis from Kamchatka Peninsula in the Russian Far East, Marasmiellus longistipes from Pakistan, Pseudozeugandromyces tachypori on Tachyporus pusillus (Coleoptera, Staphylinidae) from Belgium, Robillarda sohagensis from Egypt, Trechispora hondurensis from Honduras, and Tricholoma kenanii from Turkey. The new records are: Arthrorhynchus eucampsipodae on Eucampsipoda africanum (Diptera, Nycteribiidae) from Rwanda and South Africa, and on Nycteribia vexata (Diptera, Nycteribiidae) from Bulgaria; A. nycteribiae on Eucampsipoda africanum from South Africa, on Penicillidia conspicua (Diptera, Nycteribiidae) from Bulgaria (the first undoubtful country record), and on Penicillidia pachymela from Tanzania; Calvatia lilacina from Pakistan; Entoloma shangdongense from Pakistan; Erysiphe quercicola on Ziziphus jujuba (Rosales, Rhamnaceae) and E. urticae on Urtica dioica (Rosales, Urticaceae) from Pakistan; Fanniomyces ceratophorus on Fannia canicularis (Diptera, Faniidae) from the Netherlands; Marasmiellus biformis and M. subnuda from Pakistan; Morchella anatolica from Turkey; Ophiocordyceps ditmarii on Vespula vulgaris (Hymenoptera, Vespidae) from Austria; and Parvacoccum pini on Pinus cembra (Pinales, Pinaceae) from Austria. The new combinations are: Appendiculina gregaria, A. scaptomyzae, and Marasmiellus rodhallii. Analysis of an LSU dataset of Arthrorhynchus including isolates of A. eucampsipodae from Eucampsipoda africanum and Nycteribia spp. hosts, revealed that this taxon is a complex of multiple species segregated by host genus. Analysis of an SSU–LSU dataset of Laboulbeniomycetes sequences revealed support for the recognition of four monophyletic genera within Stigmatomyces sensu lato: Appendiculina, Fanniomyces, Gloeandromyces, and Stigmatomyces sensu stricto. Finally, phylogenetic analyses of Rhytismataceae based on ITS–LSU ribosomal DNA resulted in a close relationship of Parvacoccum pini with Coccomyces strobi.http://www.sydowia.at/index.htmpm2021Medical Virolog

Dynamics of water-mediated interaction effects on the stability and transmission of Omicron

Abstract SARS-Cov-2 Omicron variant and its highly transmissible sublineages amidst news of emerging hybrid variants strengthen the evidence of its ability to rapidly spread and evolve giving rise to unprecedented future waves. Owing to the presence of isolated RBD, monomeric and trimeric Cryo-EM structures of spike protein in complex with ACE2 receptor, comparative analysis of Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Omicron assist in a rational assessment of their probability to evolve as new or hybrid variants in future. This study proposes the role of hydration forces in mediating Omicron function and dynamics based on a stronger interplay between protein and solvent with each Covid wave. Mutations of multiple hydrophobic residues into hydrophilic residues underwent concerted interactions with water leading to variations in charge distribution in Delta and Omicron during molecular dynamics simulations. Moreover, comparative analysis of interacting moieties characterized a large number of mutations lying at RBD into constrained, homologous and low-affinity groups referred to as mutational drivers inferring that the probability of future mutations relies on their function. Furthermore, the computational findings reveal a significant difference in angular distances among variants of concern due 3 amino acid insertion (EPE) in Omicron variant that not only facilitates tight domain organization but also seems requisite for characterization of mutational processes. The outcome of this work signifies the possible relation between hydration forces, their impact on conformation and binding affinities, and viral fitness that will significantly aid in understanding dynamics of drug targets for Covid-19 countermeasures. The emerging scenario is that hydration forces and hydrophobic interactions are crucial variables to probe in mutational analysis to explore conformational landscape of macromolecules and reveal the molecular origins of protein behaviors

Exploring the phytochemicals and anti-cancer potential of the members of fabaceae family: a comprehensive review

Cancer is the second-ranked disease and a cause of death for millions of people around the world despite many kinds of available treatments. Phytochemicals are considered a vital source of cancer-inhibiting drugs and utilize specific mechanisms including carcinogen inactivation, the induction of cell cycle arrest, anti-oxidant stress, apoptosis, and regulation of the immune system. Family Fabaceae is the second most diverse family in the plant kingdom, and species of the family are widely distributed across the world. The species of the Fabaceae family are rich in phytochemicals (flavonoids, lectins, saponins, alkaloids, carotenoids, and phenolic acids), which exhibit a variety of health benefits, especially anti-cancer properties; therefore, exploration of the phytochemicals present in various members of this family is crucial. These phytochemicals of the Fabaceae family have not been explored in a better way yet; therefore, this review is an effort to summarize all the possible information related to the phytochemical status of the Fabaceae family and their anti-cancer properties. Moreover, various research gaps have been identified with directions for future research

Fungal Systematics and Evolution: FUSE 6

With only 138,000 formally described fungal species (Kirk 2019) out of an estimated 2.2–3.8 million (Hawksworth & Lücking 2017) to 6 million (Taylor et al. 2014), between 97.7 and 93.7% of fungal species are left to be characterized. These may be discovered in poorly studied habitats and geographic areas (e.g., tropical rainforests), as molecular novelties, within cryptic taxa, in fungal collections (e.g., new species hidden under current names and in unidentified material), and during studies of plant and insect collections (Hawksworth & Lücking 2017, Wijayawardene et al. 2020). This large discrepancy between described and undescribed species needs to be addressed and recent work has shown that mycologists are nowhere near levelling off the curve in describing new species (Hyde et al. 2020b). Together with other series—Fungal Biodiversity Profiles (Rossi et al. 2020), Fungal Diversity Notes (Hyde et al. 2020a), Fungal Planet (Crous et al. 2020a), Mycosphere Notes (Pem et al. 2019), New and Interesting Fungi (Crous et al. 2020b)—the Fungal Systematics and Evolution series published by Sydowia contributes to a much-needed acceleration of discovery and description of fungal diversity. The present paper is the sixth contribution in the FUSE series published by Sydowia, after Crous et al. (2015), Hernández-Restrepo et al. (2016), KrisaiGreilhuber et al. (2017), Liu et al. (2018), and Song et al. (2019). Altogether, one family, six genera, 67 species, and 22 combinations have been introduced in the FUSE series.publishedVersio

Fungal Systematics and Evolution: FUSE 6

With only 138,000 formally described fungal species (Kirk 2019) out of an estimated 2.2–3.8 million (Hawksworth & Lücking 2017) to 6 million (Taylor et al. 2014), between 97.7 and 93.7% of fungal species are left to be characterized. These may be discovered in poorly studied habitats and geographic areas (e.g., tropical rainforests), as molecular novelties, within cryptic taxa, in fungal collections (e.g., new species hidden under current names and in unidentified material), and during studies of plant and insect collections (Hawksworth & Lücking 2017, Wijayawardene et al. 2020). This large discrepancy between described and undescribed species needs to be addressed and recent work has shown that mycologists are nowhere near levelling off the curve in describing new species (Hyde et al. 2020b). Together with other series—Fungal Biodiversity Profiles (Rossi et al. 2020), Fungal Diversity Notes (Hyde et al. 2020a), Fungal Planet (Crous et al. 2020a), Mycosphere Notes (Pem et al. 2019), New and Interesting Fungi (Crous et al. 2020b)—the Fungal Systematics and Evolution series published by Sydowia contributes to a much-needed acceleration of discovery and description of fungal diversity. The present paper is the sixth contribution in the FUSE series published by Sydowia, after Crous et al. (2015), Hernández-Restrepo et al. (2016), KrisaiGreilhuber et al. (2017), Liu et al. (2018), and Song et al. (2019). Altogether, one family, six genera, 67 species, and 22 combinations have been introduced in the FUSE series