Mycodiversity in a micro-habitat: twelve Cladosporium species, including four new taxa, isolated from uredinia of coffee leaf rust, Hemileia vastatrix

Abstract

During surveys in the centres of origin of the coffee leaf rust (CLR), Hemileia vastatrix in Africa, as well as in its exotic range in Brazil, 23 isolates of the genus Cladosporium were obtained from uredinial pustules. Using a phylogenetic analysis of all isolates involving a combination of partial sequences of the internal transcribed spacer region of rDNA (ITS) and two gene regions: actin (act) and translation elongation factor-1α (tef1), 12 species were delimited; including four new species – Cladosporium chlamydosporiformans, C. hemileiicola, C. mucilaginosum and C. setoides. GCPSR criteria were employed for species recognition, supported by morphological and cultural characters. The potential of these purported mycoparasites is discussed in the context of biological control of CLR in Latin America.