Peter Edward Mortimer

Kunming Institute of Botany

This article presents the results of an ongoing inventory of Ascomycota in Yunnan, China, carried out as part of the research project series “Exploring ascomycete diversity in Yunnan”. From over 100 samples collected from diverse host substrates, microfungi have been isolated, identified and are currently being documented. The primary objective of...

The field of mycology has grown from an underappreciated subset of botany, to a valuable, modern scientific discipline. As this field of study has grown, there have been significant contributions to science, technology, and industry, highlighting the value of fungi in the modern era. This paper looks at the current research, along with the existing...

Whilst conducting surveys of lignicolous microfungi in Yunnan Province, we collected a large number of taxa that resemble Montagnula (Didymosphaeriaceae, Pleosporales). Our phylogenetic study on Montagnula involved analysing sequence data from ribosomal RNA genes (nc18S, nc28S, ITS) and protein-coding genes ( rpb 2, tef 1-α). We present a biphasic...

During our ongoing study of ascomycetes in Yunnan Province of China, a saprobic fungus was collected on a dead stem of Bidens pilosa (black-jack) in Yunnan Province, China. Preliminary identification based on the LSU, SSU, and ITS nucleotide BLAST searches demonstrated that the new isolate is related to Praeclarispora artemisiae and Phragmogibbera...

How the multiple facets of soil fungal diversity vary worldwide remains virtually unknown, hindering the management of this essential species-rich group. By sequencing high-resolution DNA markers in over 4000 topsoil samples from natural and human-altered ecosystems across all continents, we illustrate the distributions and drivers of different lev...

How the multiple facets of soil fungal diversity vary worldwide remains virtually unknown, hindering the management of this essential species-rich group. By sequencing high-resolution DNA markers in over 4000 topsoil samples from natural and human-altered ecosystems across all continents, we illustrate the distributions and drivers of different lev...

Fungi provide ecological and environmental services to humans, as well as health and nutritional benefits, and are vital to numerous industries. Fermented food and beverage products from fungi are circulating in the market, generating billions of USD. However, the highest potential monetary value of fungi is their role in blue carbon trading becaus...

Fungi are considered among the most efficient microbial degraders of plastics, as they produce salient enzymes and can survive on recalcitrant compounds with limited nutrients. In recent years, studies have reported numerous species of fungi that can degrade different types of plastics, yet there remain many gaps in our understanding of the process...

Bats represent the second largest mammal group, with over 1400 known species dispersed across six continents. Bats are unique in many ways. Notably, their incredible longevity, with a life span of up to ten times longer than what might be expected from their body size and a unique ability to tolerate viruses without displaying any symptoms, means t...

In the present study, a new species, Scolecohyalosporium thailandense, is introduced based on morphological and molecular approaches. The species was found as a saprobe occurring on Imperata sp. (Poaceae) in terrestrial habitats in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. This species is characterized by solitary, semi-immersed to erumpent, subglobose to amp...

Fungal pathogens have become an increasingly important topic in recent decades. Yet whilst various cankers and blights have gained attention in temperate woodlands and crops, the scope for fungal pathogens of animals and their potential threat has received far less attention. With a shifting climate, the threat from fungal pathogens is predicted to...

Alternaria, a genus of ascomycetes, comprises major plant pathogens, saprobes and are common allergens to humans. There are more than 360 accepted species in the genus, which are currently divided into 29 sections. This paper aims to elaborate the taxonomy of Alternaria with multi-locus phylogenetic trees derived by analyses of a concatenated DNA s...

Niego A.G.T., Rapior S., Thongklang N., Raspé O., Hyde K.D., Mortimer P. Reviewing the contributions of macrofungi to forest ecosystem processes and services. Fungal Biology Reviews, 44, June, 100294 (2023). doi:10.1016/j.fbr.2022.11.002. hal-03891167 ____ Macrofungi are vital components of any forest ecosystem, performing different roles crucial...

This study introduces the new genus Honghemyces in the family Bezerromycetaceae (Tubeufiales) based on morphological features and multi-locus (ITS, LSU, SSU, tef1-α and rpb2) phylogenetic analyses. This fungus was found on dead twigs of Pterolobium macropterum (Fabaceae) during an expedition to Honghe County in China. Phylogenetically, Honghemyces...

Phaeocytostroma species (Diaporthaceae, Diaporthales, Sordariomycetes) are mainly associated with grasses (Poaceae) and are considered important pathogens of maize and sugarcane. In the present study, a phaeocytostroma-like taxon was collected from bamboo culms in Yunnan, China and characterized using morphological and multigene phylogenetic analys...

The present disclosure provides a culture substrate and a culture method of Auricularia cornea relating to the technical field of mushroom culture. In the present invention, the residues of C4 plant that widely exist and rapidly grow are used as the raw material, reducing the current demand on the use of C3 plants as substrates in the mushroom-cult...

Taxonomic studies of bambusicolous fungi in China and Thailand have resulted in the collection of three fascinating saprobic coelomycetes strains. Morphology coupled with combined gene analysis of ITS, LSU, TUB2, and TEF1-α DNA sequence data showed that they belong to the genus Apiospora, family Apiosporaceae. A new species from Thailand, Apiospora...

Fungi are an understudied resource possessing huge potential for developing products that can greatly improve human well-being. In the current paper, we highlight some important discoveries and developments in applied mycology and interdisciplinary Life Science research. These examples concern recently introduced drugs for the treatment of infectio...

Fungi are a diverse and highly abundant group of organisms found in soils worldwide. Understanding fungi is essential as they are key drivers of below-ground ecosystem functions. Taxonomy is a fundamental discipline, acting as the initial step toward biodiversity, ecology, and biotechnology studies. Both culture-dependent and -independent methods a...

Current strategies for increasing food production rely heavily on the use of agrichemicals to improve plant growth and resistance to disease. However, many of these chemicals have been shown to have negative impacts on human health and the environment. Nanotechnology presents itself as one of the promising technologies that can be employed to overc...

Globally, the quality of agricultural soils is in decline as a result of mismanagement and the overuse of agrichemicals, negatively impacting crop yields. Agaricus subrufescens Peck is widely cultivated as an edible and medicinal mushroom; however, its application in soil bioremediation and amendment remains insufficiently studied. In order to dete...

The genus Alternaria is comprised of well-known plant pathogens causing various important diseases in plants, as well as being common allergens in animals and humans. Species of Alternaria can be found as saprobes associated with various dead plant materials. This research aims to enhance the taxonomy of saprobic species in the genus Alternaria fou...

Fungi are highly diverse organisms, which provide multiple ecosystem services. However, compared with charismatic animals and plants, the distribution patterns and conservation needs of fungi have been little explored. Here we used high‐resolution sequencing to assess endemicity patterns, global change vulnerability and conservation priority areas...

Forests, trees, and agroforestry (FTA) are ecosystem hotspots. They exemplify the contributions of biodiversity to sustainable and resilient landscapes, green circular economy and to sustainable agriculture and food systems for healthy diets. However, most research on these topics have been performed separately and lack comparison. The Internationa...

While surveying the mycobiomes of dead woody litter in Yunnan Province, China, numerous isolates with affinity to Pleosporales (Dothideomycetes, Ascomycota) were recovered. The present work characterizes two species associated with dead woody twigs found in terrestrial habitats in the Kunming area of Yunnan. The novel taxa were recognized based on...

In Asia, large swathes of rainforest have been converted to rubber plantations, with major consequences for biodiversity and ecosystem services. However, the impact of this land use conversion on rhizosphere soil mycobiome has not yet been addressed. This study aims to investigate how rhizosphere soil fungal communities and their associated biologi...

Two specimens of Lycoperdon were collected in 2012 and 2013 during surveys conducted in evergreen broadleaf forests of Xishuangbanna, Yunnan Province, China. Macro- and micro- morphological characteristics, together with analyses of combined ITS and LSU sequence data, showed that fi ve specimens represent a single new species and is thus named as L...

A dead Asian House Gecko, infected with multiple species of fungi, was found floating in a jug of water inside a building in Kunming, China. The dead gecko was taken to the mycology laboratory at the Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences and different fungal species were isolated. Phylogenetic analyses were carried out on the res...

The association of endophytic fungi with the host plant is called a symbiotic relationship. Studies of the endophytic fungi from tea have been reported in numerous documents, but researchers still largely focus on tea endophytic fungi as they have ability to produce bioactive compounds which have numerous applications. The present work characterize...

In the course of investigating the systematics of woody litter micromycete associates in Yunnan Province, China, we found one new species in Phaeoseptaceae, one new genus and three new species in Sulcatisporaceae from 16 specimens collected (ten collections of ascomycetous teleomorphs, four collections of hyphomycetous and two collections of coelom...

Fungal taxonomy research, and specifically the study of macro and micro morphological characteristics, requires precise temperature control. This is because variation in temperature can affect macrofungal microstructures. Understanding the appropriate temperature range for drying macrofungal fruitbodies is crucial to ensure consistent reports betwe...

Fungi play pivotal roles in ecosystem functioning, but little is known about their global patterns of diversity, endemicity, vulnerability to global change drivers and conservation priority areas. We applied the high-resolution PacBio sequencing technique to identify fungi based on a long DNA marker that revealed a high proportion of hitherto unkno...

Seven species of bioluminescent mushrooms belonging to seven genera have been described in the tropical rainforests of China. This study contributes the eighth species, found growing on decaying bamboo in Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG). Morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analyses using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) a...

Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key finding...

Seven species of bioluminescent mushrooms belonging to seven genera have been described in the tropical rainforests of China. This study contributes the eighth species, found growing on decaying bamboo in Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG). Morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analyses using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) a...

Agarwood, a dark resin heartwood, is known as one of the most expensive natural products on the planet. In China, agarwood is mainly produced by Aquilaria sinensis (Lour.) Spreng. (Thymelaeaceae). Fungal inoculation is the primary mechanism to artificially induce agarwood production. In this study, endophytic fungi were collected and isolated from...

During our survey into the diversity of woody litter fungi across the Greater Mekong Subregion, three rhytidhysteron-like taxa were collected from dead woody twigs in China and Thailand. These were further investigated based on morphological observations and multi-gene phylogenetic analyses of a combined DNA data matrix containing SSU, LSU, ITS, an...

Three fungal specimens (two sexual and one asexual) were collected during fieldwork conducted in China, Taiwan and Thailand. Both sexual morphs share superficial, black ascomata surrounded by flexuous setae; 8-spored, unitunicate, cylindrical asci, with J+, apical ring, and ellipsoidal to allantoid, aseptate, guttulate ascospores. The asexual morph...

During a survey of rubber tree plantations in Yunnan Province, China, a fungus growing on natural rubber latex was collected and isolated. Maximum likelihood and Bayesian analyses of combined ITS, LSU, SSU, tef-α and rpb2 genes showed the isolated taxon belongs to Wiesneriomycetaceae and was well separated from closely related genera with high stat...

Stropharia rugosoannulata contain polysaccharides, sterols, lectins, flavonoids, vitamins and minerals. Various bioactivities are reported from this mushroom, such as antidiabetic, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiproliferative, antitumor, immunomodulatory and suppressing osteoclast formation properties. The mushroom has also been cultivated to incr...

This article is the 13th contribution in the Fungal Diversity Notes series, wherein 125 taxa from four phyla, ten classes, 31 orders, 69 families, 92 genera and three genera incertae sedis are treated, demonstrating worldwide and geographic distribution. Fungal taxa described and illustrated in the present study include three new genera, 69 new spe...

Fungi are highly important biotic components of terrestrial ecosystems, but we still have a very limited understanding about their diversity and distribution. This data article releases a global soil fungal dataset of the Global Soil Mycobiome consortium (GSMc) to boost further research in fungal diversity, biogeography and macroecology. The datase...

Wild edible fungi (WEF), including mushrooms and truffles, comprise a natural source of nutritious and healthy food. The consumption of WEF began at least 18,700 years ago during the Stone Age. Current data from over 100 countries indicates the existence of more than 2,100 edible species, a figure that is continually growing, as vast regions and ma...

The cosmopolitan fungal genus Ganoderma is an important pathogen on arboreal plant hosts, particularly in tropical and temperate regions. It has long been used as a traditional medicine because of its medicinal properties and chemical constituents. In this study, Ganoderma collections were made in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS), encompassing tr...

Intensive crop production, use of pesticides, and unsustainable farming practices are known to cause land degradation and soil contamination. Both have led to a decline in biodiversity and changes in the functional groups of soil microorganisms. Although physicochemical methods have been used to apply soil amendments to agricultural land, mushroom...

An undetermined saprobic fungal taxon from Yunnan (China) is revealed as a new genus in Scortechiniaceae (Coronophorales). The novel taxon, Yuxiensis, is characterized by immersed to erumpent, semi-globose ascomata, which are not surrounded by any tomentum or conspicuous subiculum, a subcylindrical quellkörper in the centrum, clavate asci with long...

During our ongoing studies of bambusicolous fungi in southwest China and Thailand, three saprobic pleosporalean taxa were discovered on bamboos in Yunnan Province of China. Occultibambusa hongheensis and Seriascoma bambusae spp. nov. are introduced based on morphological characteristics coupled with multi-locus phylogenetic analyses of combined LSU...

Anticipating warming related to climate change, commercial mango plantations in China have been shifting from lower to higher elevations. Such a practice may expose mangoes to climatic conditions that could affect photosynthesis. Photosynthesis research on mango has previously examined mature plantations but exploring adequate functions before the...

Amanita submelleialba sp. nov. in section Amanita, is described from northern Thailand based on both multi-gene phylogenetic analysis and morphological evidences. It is characterized by having small to medium-sized basidiomata; a yellow to yellowish pale pileus covering pyramidal to subconical, white to yellow white volval remnants; globose stipe b...

A large amount of propellant materials are produced every year, and storage and disposal of these propellant materials seriously contributes to environmental pollution. Alkyne terminated polybutadiene with urethane segments (PUPB) is the macromolecule backbone of these propellant materials, and degradation of PUPB is central to the eco-friendly...

A dead woody sample of Acer sp. with fungal fruiting bodies was collected in Pu’er City of Yunnan Province. Multigene phylogenetic analyses of LSU, ITS, SSU, and tef1-α sequence data showed that our collection belongs to Montagnula and is well separated from all other extant species. Montagnula puerensis is compared with all extant species by morph...

During our survey of the diversity of woody litter fungi in China and Thailand, three Hermatomyces species were collected from dead woody twigs of Dipterocarpus sp. (Dipterocarpaceae) and Ehretia acuminata (Boraginaceae). Both morphology and multigene analyses revealed two taxa as new species ( Hermatomyces turbinatus and H. jinghaensis ) and the r...

A large amount of propellant materials are produced every year, and storage and disposal of these propellant materials seriously contributes to environmental pollution. Alkyne terminated polybutadiene with urethane segments (PUPB) is the macromolecule backbone of these propellant materials, and degradation of PUPB is central to the eco-friendly tre...

Industrial soil contamination negatively affects flora and fauna in the soil. Nevertheless, some fungi have the ability to survive in such polluted soils. In this study, we isolated fungal strains from polluted soils in industrialized areas of Kunming City, Yunnan Province, China. Fungal strains underwent morphological observations, subjected to ph...

A large amount of propellant materials are produced every year, and storage and disposal of these propellant materials seriously contributes to environmental pollution. Alkyne terminated polybutadiene with urethane segments (PUPB) is the macromolecule backbone of these propellant materials, and degradation of PUPB is central to the eco-friendly tre...

In this paper we describe a new species of cave fungus belonging to Sporocadaceae (Amphisphaeriales), collected from Gem Cave, Fumin County, Yunnan Province, China. Initial morphological observations confirmed that our fungal collection is a pestalotioid species. Phylogenetic analyses of combined internal transcribed spacer (ITS), β-tubulin (TUB) a...

During our survey of the diversity of woody litter fungi in China and Thailand, three Hermatomyces species were collected from dead woody twigs of Dipterocarpus sp. (Dipterocarpaceae) and Ehretia acuminata (Boraginaceae). Both morphology and multigene analyses revealed two taxa as new species (Hermatomyces turbinatus and H. jinghaensis) and the rem...

Mycorrhizal and N-fixing root symbioses evolved at two points in the past when global CO2 was highest, consistent with the high demand these symbioses place on host C. Trees hosting both mycorrhiza and N-fixing bacteria are able to fix more atmospheric CO2 and grow at faster rates than non-symbiotic plants, or plants with only mycorrhiza. We argue...

Macrofungi have been utilized as a food source for thousands of years and contribute significantly to human health and nutrition. The increasing recognition of macrofungi as a valuable food source has resulted in an exponential increase in global production, trade and consumption of macrofungi. Thus, in this article, we present up-to-date informati...

Soil fungal communities, which drive many ecosystem processes, vary across soil horizons. However, how fungal communities are influenced by soil horizon layers remains largely unstudied. In this study, soil samples were collected from the organic horizon (O horizon) and mineral matter horizon (M horizon) in two sites of Dabie Mountain, China and th...

Algae, bacteria, and fungi, as well as higher plants, produce a wide variety of secondary metabolites known as natural products. Natural products are well known as remarkable sources of many therapeutic agents. The genus Nemania is a wood-decaying fungus that belongs to family Xylariaceae. Nemania is often found as an endophyte in diverse hosts and...

Insects first began evolving hundreds of millions of years ago, and aided by gut microbes, they have been consuming hydrocarbon polymers ever since. Few man-made plastic polymers are chemically novel, so it is reasonable that insect/microbe systems can be found or developed to degrade them rapidly. However, remediation of global plastic waste probl...

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) provide benefits to most crop species via enhanced nutrient uptake, increased drought and abiotic stress resistance, and reduced effects of pathogens and pests. Much remains unclear regarding the specific mechanisms influencing these processes, and the critical roles of AMF are often overlooked in planning agroeco...

Climate change will affect numerous crops in the future; however, perennial crops, such as tea, are particularly vulnerable. Climate change will also strongly influence fungal pathogens. Here, we predict how future climatic conditions will impact tea and its associated pathogens. We collected data on the three most important fungal pathogens of tea...

Within the field of mycology, macrofungi have been relatively well-studied when compared to microfungi. However, the diversity and distribution of microfungi inhabiting woody material have not received the same degree of research attention, especially in relatively unexplored regions, such as Yunnan Province, China. To help address this knowledge g...

During an investigation into the microfungi on Dracaena fragrans in Thailand, a saprobic taxon belonging to Glomerellaceae was collected. Based on morphological characterization and combined phylogenetic analyses of ITS, GAPDH, CHS-1, ACT and TUB2 sequence data from the sexual and asexual morphs our taxon was identified as a new species of Colletot...

Members of Dodonaea are broadly distributed across subtropical and tropical areas of southwest and southern China. This host provides multiple substrates that can be richly colonized by numerous undescribed fungal species. There is a severe lack of microfungal studies on Dodonaea in China, and consequently, the diversity, phylogeny and taxonomy of...

Questions Macrofungi provide important ecosystem functions and economic value. However, their distributive patterns among woody plant communities and the influence of abiotic factors remain poorly understood. We hypothesized that: (a) the community composition and richness of woody plants are significantly positively correlated with macrofungal com...

Restricted access to quality crops and markets limits the capacity of rural communities to generate income in the mountainous regions of South and Southeast Asia, often resulting in the exploitation of forest systems, a subsequent decline in forest health, and the need for alternative means of income generation as well as forest restoration program...

Bioluminescent fungus Roridomyces viridiluminus sp. nov. and the first Chinese record of the genus Roridomyces, Abstract A bioluminescent macrofungus found growing on dead wood in the mountains of Southwest China, Yunnan Province, Yulong Naxi Autonomous County, is analyzed and described. Phylogenetic analyses of the nuclear ribosomal large subunit...

Acrocordiella yunnanensis sp. nov. is introduced here from dead twigs of an unidentified dicotyledonous host from Xishuangbanna Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. Phylogenetic analyses based on LSU and ITS sequence data revealed that this new species with a distinct sexual morph belongs to Requienellaceae (Sordariomycetes, Ascomycota). Acrocordiel...

This is a facsimile version of the supplementary data that accompany the published article ( http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1541-4337.12708 ). The original version is available from Comprehensive Reviews in Food Safety and Food Security.

Wild mushrooms are a vital source of income and nutrition for many poor communities and of value to recreational foragers. Literature relating to the edibility of mushroom species continues to expand, driven by an increasing demand for wild mushrooms, a wider interest in foraging, and the study of traditional foods. Although numerous case reports h...

The monotypic Neolophiotrema (typified by N. xiaokongense) is introduced for a wood-inhabiting taxon classified in Dothideomycetes. The genus is characterized by, coriaceous, immersed to semi-immersed ascomata, hamathecium with cellular pseudoparaphyses and overlapping 1–2-seriate, hyaline ascospores. Phylogenetic analysis of combined SSU, LSU, ITS...

Entomopathogenic fungi are ubiquitous in tropical rainforests and feature a high level of diversity. This group of fungi not only has important ecological value but also medicinal value. Nevertheless, they are often ignored, and many unknown species have yet to be discovered and described. The present study aims to contribute to the taxonomical and...

Wild mushrooms are a vital source of income and nutrition for many poor com-munities and of value to recreational foragers. Literature relating to the edibilityof mushroom species continues to expand, driven by an increasing demand forwild mushrooms, a wider interest in foraging, and the study of traditional foods.Although numerous case reports hav...

During a survey of soil fungi in Yunnan Province, several isolates of Aspergillus were obtained. Based on morphology and molecular analyses of internal transcribed spacer regions and intervening 5.8S nrRNA gene (ITS), β-tubulin and calmodulin (CaM) genes sequences, two isolates were identified as Aspergillus vadensis (section Nigri). A phylogenetic...

Wild mushrooms are a vital source of income and nutrition for many poor communities and of value to recreational foragers. Literature relating to the edibility of mushroom species continues to expand, driven by an increasing demand for wild mushrooms, a wider interest in foraging, and the study of traditional foods. Although numerous case reports h...

The Greater Mekong Subregion is a biodiversity hotspot including Yunnan Province, China and Thailand. It is home to an extremely large diversity of microfungi. The highly variable climate and vast range of floral diversity facilitates rapid speciation and diversity in microfungi. During the last few decades, microfungi from the Greater Mekong Subre...

Ophiocordyceps tianshanensis is a novel species introduced from Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. The taxon was discovered with its sexual and asexual specimens on Camponotus japonicus (Formicidae) under the bark of humid and decayed wood of Picea schrenkiana. With irregularly distorted stromata and distributed in the cold and high-altitude...

A new monotypic coelomycetous genus, Loculosulcatispora (type species L. thailandica) is introduced in Pleosporales from woody litter in Thailand. Phylogenetic analysis of combined non-translated loci (SSU, LSU, ITS) and protein-coding regions (tef1-α, rpb2) shows the genus is a distinct lineage in Sulcatisporaceae. Loculosulcatispora is distinguis...