Rajesh Jeewon

University of Mauritius | UoM · Faculty of Science

The history of assigning ranks to fungi, as well as the relative importance of using divergence time estimates is reviewed. The paper pays tribute to the major mycological players, and especially to David Hawksworth on his 70th birthday and his contribution to fungal ranking in Systema Ascomycetum from 1982 to 1998. Following the conclusion of the...

Fusiconidium mackenziei sp. nov. and Fusiconidium aquaticum sp. nov., isolated from a dead branch of Clematis vitalba in Italy and a submerged decaying wood in China respectively, are described and illustrated. The new taxa are characterized by having rhexolytic conidial secession, percurrently proliferating conidiophores, with enteroblastic conidi...

The current classification system for the recognition of taxonomic ranks among fungi, especially at high-ranking level, is subjective. With the development of molecular approaches and the availability of fossil calibration data, the use of divergence times as a universally standardized criterion for ranking taxa has now become possible. We can ther...

The previous phylogenies of Sordariomycetes by M.E. Barr, O.E. Eriksson and D.L. Hawksworth, and T. Lumbsch and S. Huhndorf, were mainly based on morphology and thus were somewhat subjective. Later outlines by T. Lumbsch and S. Huhndorf, and Maharachchikumbura and co-authors, took into account phylogenetic evidence. However, even these phylogenetic...

Foodborne diseases have always been linked to numerous food manufacturing elements and home practices of purchasers and the latter does play a critical role in disease prevention. Consumers have the ultimate responsibility for handling and storing food safely and take adequate safety precautions when preparing and consuming food at home to avoid he...

Middle age is an important period of life whereby unhealthy eating habits may develop. In addition, during old age, certain transitions such as retirement may impact on eating habits and health. This study was undertaken to identify and characterize dietary patterns in the middle aged and elderly people and to assess different factors influencing e...

Four new species and two new host records of Torula (Torulaceae, Pleosporales) are described and illustrated from herbaceous litter collected in Italy and Thailand. The new species possess colony, conidiophore and conidial characteristics that fit within the generic concept of Torula. Detailed morphological observations clearly demarcate four of th...

The taxonomy of the family Cucurbitariaceae and its allies, especially Fenestellaceae has received little attention despite its broad relevance. To further clarify phylogenetic relationships between the two families, new collections were made and samples examined morphologically. Morphometric observations reveal two new Fenestella species that are...

Background: Adolescence is considered a critical period marked by an increase in energy intake to meet the body's physiological needs especially during puberty. This study reviews existing literature and critically analyses factors associated with eating habits and energy intake of adolescent girls. Methods: A comprehensive search was conducted...

The diversity of lignicolous freshwater fungi along a north-south latitudinal gradient are currently being studied in Asia. In this paper, we report on 18 collections of asexual morphs of Tubeufiaceae from submerged wood in rivers, streams and a lake in Yunnan Province, China. Taxa are characterized based on morphological characters and analyses of...

This is a continuity of a series of taxonomic and phylogenetic papers on the fungi where materials were collected from many countries, examined and described. In addition to extensive morphological descriptions and appropriate asexual and sexual connections, DNA sequence data are also analysed from concatenated datasets to infer phylogenetic relati...

Sydowiellaceae is a poorly studied family of the order Diaporthales, comprising a collection of morphologically diversified taxa. Eleven genera have been previously listed under this family. In this study, we provide a DNA sequence-based phylogeny for genera of Sydowiellaceae based on analyses of a combined LSU, ITS, RPB2 and TEF sequence dataset t...

In this paper we introduce the new species Leptosporella arengae and L. cocois, Linocarpon arengae and L. cocois, and Neolinocarpon arengae and N. rachidis from palms in Thailand, based on morphology and combined analyses of ITS and LSU sequence data. The phylogenetic positions all these new taxa are well-supported within the order Chaetosphaeriale...

Fungal endophytes are considered ecologically important microorganisms, but their role is the subject of much speculation and the methods and approaches by which endophytes are detected and identified give rather different results. In this study, we isolated a specific endophyte from a traditional medicinal plant and investigated its phylogenetic r...

Zygosporium species are widespread on hosts and usually associated with monocotyledonous plants including Arecaceae (palms) and Pandanaceae. Zygosporium forms colonies as darkened spots on the host surface. This study recovers two Zygosporium species from China and Thailand and makes an attempt to clarify the systematic placement of Zygosporium bas...

Fungal taxonomy has a long history and nomenclatural type specimens constitute an integral part of fungal classification and nomenclature. To date, type specimens/old names have served as excellent exemplars and references and have been the pillar for a stable classification and appropriate nomenclature. However, with an increase in the number of s...

A new species of Neooccultibambusa, N. jonesii, is introduced from Ammophila arenaria mmophila arenaria mmophila arenaria mmophila arenaria mmophila arenariammophila arenaria mmophila arenaria collected in Italy. The novel taxon is characterized by immersed to semi-immersed ascomata in fissures of bark, a two-layered peridium, hyaline to brown asco...

This paper briefly discusses the history of fungal taxonomy and contributes to the concepts and the importance of ranking genera, families and orders. We propose recommendations for introducing species into appropriate ranks such as genera, families and orders, as well as the rationale to maintain species in one genus or segregate one genus into se...

The purpose of the study was to assess the determinants of nutrition behaviors and body mass index and determine the impact of a nutrition education intervention (NEI) among Mauritian housewives. A pretest-posttest design was used assessing Nutrition Knowledge (NK), Nutrition Attitudes, Fruit and Vegetable Intake (FVI), body mass index (BMI). Two h...

Adulthood and middle age is widely recognized as the time of life when unhealthy eating habits may develop. Data from various studies have demonstrated that changes in eating habits may also occur during old age. It is essential to acknowledge that a high consumption of certain food groups such as sweetened beverages, meat and eggs may contribute t...

Ganoderma lucidum, commonly treated as Lingzhi mushroom, is a traditional Chinese medicine which has been widely used over two millennia in Asian countries for maintaining vivacity and longevity. Numerous publications can be found reporting that G. lucidum may possess various beneficial medical properties and contributes to a variety of biological...

A species`species`geographic range and its variation through time constitute some of the key ecological characteristics of flowering plants, which furthermore often have evolutionary implications and help shape intraspecific diversity. It is also considered as a valuable parameter for conservationists as it is often a good predictor of extinction r...

This is a continuity of a series of taxonomic papers where materials are examined, described and novel combinations are proposed where necessary to improve our traditional species concepts and provide updates on their classification. In addition to extensive morphological descriptions and appropriate asexual and sexual connections, DNA sequence dat...

Objective: To evaluate antimicrobial activities as well as the phytochemical and lavicidal properties of different parts of Jatropha curcas L. (J. curcas) growing in Mauritius. Methods: Determination of the presence of phytochemicals in the crude plants extracts by test tube reactions. Disc diffusion method and microdilution method were used to det...

Over the past two decades, there has been a shift towards consumption of energy-dense, imported processed foods and fast foods accompanied by a neglect of the traditional diets in many developing countries. A neglect of traditional food (TF) systems is related to nutrition transition marked by an increased consumption of unhealthy processed foods a...

Colletotrichum is one of the most important plant pathogenic genera worldwide. There have been many studies on this genus, as species are important in many disciplines, especially in plant disease diagnostics. In this paper we discuss the importance of accurately naming Colletotrichum species. In most cases we conclude that it is important to know...

Sordariomycetes is one of the largest classes of Ascomycota that comprises a highly diverse range of fungi characterized mainly by perithecial ascomata and inoperculate unitunicate asci. The class includes many important plant pathogens, as well as endophytes, saprobes, epiphytes, coprophilous and fungicolous, lichenized or lichenicolous taxa. They...

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a multicomponent nutrition education program among adults. A pretest—posttest design was used assessing Nutritional Knowledge (NK), BMI, Energy Intake (EI), Physical Activity Level (PAL), Dietary Intake (DI) and attitudes. 353 adults aged 19–55 years (178 control group (CG) and 175 inter...

Background: The classification of diversity in germplasm collections is important for plant breeding. The repetitive element palindromic-polymerase chain reaction (rep-PCR) technique was used to investigate inter-specific diversity within 17 species from the Euphorbiaceae family using REP and BOX primers. Results: The agglomerative cluster analysis...

Ganoderma lucidum is a popular medicinal mushroom that has been used particularly in China, Japan and Korea for millennia to improve longevity and health. Research on various metabolic activities of G. lucidum have been performed in both in vitro and in vivo studies. There are a vast number of publications that show the abundance and variety of bio...

Colletotrichum is one of the most important plant pathogenic genera worldwide. There have been many studies on this genus, as species are important in many disciplines, especially in plant disease diagnostics. In this paper we discuss the importance of accurately naming Colletotrichum species. In most cases we conclude that it is important to know...

Over the years, nutritional information on food packages has gained popularity among food manufacturers and consumers due to increasing consumer interest in health and dietary issues. Nutrition label acts as a marketing tool for food manufacturers and is a source of information for the purchaser. It acts as a regulatory mechanism whereby consumers...

Accurate identification and demarcation of taxa has far reaching implications in mycology, especially when plant pathogens are involved. Yet few publications have seriously proposed recommendations as to how to delineate species boundaries. Morphology, with all its taxonomic disparities, has been the main criterion upon which current fungal species...

Old people suffer from many non-communicable diseases which are mainly consequences of their improper eating habits. Among older adults, eating habits are in turn affected by health status and biological changes shaped by aging which are mediated by a larger pool of factors including familial, social and economic factors. The aim of this article is...

Background: Sufficient intake of fruits and vegetables has been associated with a reduced risk of chronic diseases and body weight management but the exact mechanism is unknown. The World Health Organisation and Food and Agriculture of the United Nation reports recommend adults to consume at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day exc...

This paper is a compilation of notes on 142 fungal taxa, including five new families, 20 new genera, and 100 new species, representing a wide taxonomic and geographic range. The new families, Ascocylindricaceae, Caryosporaceae and Wicklowiaceae (Ascomycota) are introduced based on their distinct lineages and unique morphology. The new Dothideomycet...

Abstract Taxonomic names are key links between various databases that store information on different organisms. Several global fungal nomenclural and taxonomic databases (notably Index Fungorum, Species Fungorum and MycoBank) can be sourced to find taxonomic details about fungi, while DNA sequence data can be sourced from NCBI, EBI and UNITE databa...

This paper is a compilation of notes on 142 fungal taxa, including five new families, 20 new genera, and 100 new species, representing a wide taxonomic and geographic range. The new families, Ascocylindricaceae, Caryosporaceae and Wicklowiaceae (Ascomycota) are introduced based on their distinct lineages and unique morphology. The new Dothideomycet...

Reproductive years represent a major proportion of women‟s life. This review focuses on recommended nutritional considerations, physical activity pattern as well as the effect of nutrition education (NE) on behavior modification and health outcomes of women of reproductive age using either single-level, multiple-level or community-level interventio...

Menopause is an inevitable physiological situation. A decline in oestrogen levels marks the characterisation of menopause. As such, menopausal women are subjected to an increased risk of adverse conditions related to the bone, heart and they experience weight issues as well. Osteoporosis not only impacts on the quality of life of menopausal women a...

Introduction: In Mauritius, studies on skin problem are limited to adults only and no reports are available on skin health of infants and toddlers. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of skin problem among infants and toddlers and to investigate whether there is an association between socioeconomic status and education level of par...

The aim of this review is to document the advantages of exclusive breastfeeding along with concerns which may hinder the practice of breastfeeding and focuses on the appropriateness of complementary feeding and feeding difficulties which infants encounter. Breastfeeding, as recommended by the World Health Organisation, is the most cost effective wa...

Objective: To determine Mauritian consumers' attitudes toward nutritional labels based on the Kano model and to identify determinants of the use and understanding of nutrition labels. Design: The researchers also used a Kano model questionnaire to determine consumers' attitudes toward nutrition labeling. Setting: Four hundred consumers residin...

Food handlers are crucial links in the food chain from farm to fork. The safety of our food depends largely on them. However, malpractices have been reported on numerous occasions resulting in food poisoning outbreaks. Therefore it is essential that food handlers are properly trained so that they take the necessary precautions to avoid such acciden...

Introduction: Given the rise in the prevalence of skin infections in many countries and the lack of published data pertaining to the prevalence and awareness of skin infection in Mauritius, this survey is the first of its kind to provide data on this issue. The aim of this study is to describe the association of skin infection with various predispo...

Introduction: Nail infection like onychomycosis is mainly caused by dermatophytes and account for almost half of all nail disorders. Prevalence of nail infection has been attributed to several factors such as age, gender, socioeconomic status and predisposition to diabetes amongst others. This study aims at determining the prevalence and level of a...

Introduction: The pattern of skin diseases in any community is influenced by genetic constitution, climate, socioeconomic status, occupation, education, hygienic standards, customs and quality of medical care. The burden of skin disease also has an impact on the Quality of Life of adolescents. This study aims to investigate the level of awareness a...

Endophytes are fungi associated with plants without causing symptoms, and they are quite diverse and have enormous potential for production of important secondary metabolites for the pharmaceutical industry. In this study, we report for the first time fungi (both endophytes and saprobes) from Antidesma madagascariense, a medicinal plant in Mauritiu...

The aging population (60 years and above) is becoming a global phenomenon and so is in Mauritius and over the last 4 years there has been an increase of 20.4%. There is an inadequate nutrition-related data among the older adults in Mauritius and in addition the factors influencing eating habits warrant investigation. This study aimed to understand...

Although many health disparities arise as a result of socioeconomic inequalities, less is known about the diet quality of women after menopause. The present study aimed to determine the factors affecting food habits and body mass index (BMI) among premenopausal and post-menopausal Mauritian working women. The study was conducted as a cross-sectiona...

A healthy diet is of particular concern throughout the life of women to avoid many chronic illnesses especially during their 30s to 50s. There are published data on dietary quality and its determinants among women, but there is a lack of similar data regarding women in Mauritius. This study aimed to investigate the association between age and dieta...

Proper breastfeeding practices are effective ways for reducing childhood morbidity and mortality. While many mothers understand the importance of breastfeeding, others are less knowledgeable on the benefits of breastfeeding and weaning. The aim in here is to assess breastfeeding pattern, infant formula feeding pattern, and weaning introduction in M...

Endophytes are fungi associated with plants without causing symptoms, and they are quite diverse and have enormous potential for production of important secondary metabolites for the pharmaceutical industry. In this study, we report for the first time fungi (both endophytes and saprobes) from Antidesma madagascariense, a medicinal plant in Mauritiu...

Background. Weight-loss behaviours are highly prevalent among adolescents, and body weight perception motivates weight control practices. However, little is known about the association of body weight perception, and weight control practices among teenagers in Mauritius. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationships between actual body w...

Background. Low calcium intake, a risk factor of osteoporosis and subsequent fractures, has been previously reported among post-menopausal women in Mauritius. Objective. To assess the effectiveness of a theory-based educational intervention in improving the calcium intake, self-efficacy, and knowledge of older Mauritians. Methodology. The study was...

There are no documented studies on socioeconomic status (SES) and body mass index (BMI) among Mauritian adolescents. This study aimed to determine the relationships between SES and BMI among adolescents with focus on diet quality and physical activity (PA) as mediating factors. Mauritian school adolescents (n = 200; 96 males, 104 females) were recr...

This manuscript provides an account of nematode-trapping fungi including their taxonomy, phylogeny and evolution. There are four broad groups of nematophagous fungi categorized based on their mechanisms of attacking nematodes. These include 1) nematode-trapping fungi using adhesive or mechanical hyphal traps, 2) endoparasitic fungi using their spor...

A survey of the endophytic Pestalotiopsis associated with 27 plant species belonging to four families in Hainan Province was carried out from 2007 to 2008. Colonization frequencies of endophytic Pestalotiopsis species varied in the host plant's tissues, sites and natural environmental conditions. Species composition of endophytic Pestalotiopsis var...

Previous phylogenetic studies based on DNA sequence data have partially resolved taxonomic relationships among Pestalotiopsis species. There are still some morphological characters whose phylogenetic significance have not been assessed properly due to limited taxon sampling, in particular the degree of pigmentation of median cells. In this study, t...

Partial 28S rRNA gene sequence-data of the strains of the anamorphic genera Bahusutrabeeja, Diplococcium, Natarajania, Paliphora, Polyschema, Rattania and Spadicoides were analysed to predict their phylogenetic relationships and taxonomic placement within the Ascomycota. Results indicate that Diplococcium and morphologically similar genera, i.e. Sp...

Daruvedia bacillata, the type species of the monotypic genus Daruvedia, has rarely been collected or reported, but has been placed in many unrelated genera. This paper gives a description of the fungus based on studies of the type specimen, a collection by RAMC,. Dennis, and freshly collected material. The taxon is epitypified and a discussion on i...

An ascomycete with morphological similarities to Astrocysti (Xylariaceae) was collected from the peat swamp palms Eleiodoxa conferta and Licuala longicalycata in southern Thailand and is introduced here. The new taxon is characterized by carbonaceous black stromata on persistent white hyphae, and brown ascospores surrounded by a thin mucilaginous s...

Daruvedia bacillata, the type species of the monotypic genus Daruvedia, has rarely been collected or reported, but has been placed in many unrelated genera. This paper gives a description of the fungus based on studies of the type specimen, a collection by R.W.G. Dennis, and freshly collected material. The taxon is epitypified and a discussion on i...

Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) fingerprinting was used to assess the molecular diversity of myxomycetes from environmental samples (decaying wood and forest floor litter) collected at the Mushroom Research Centre in northern Thailand. Total genomic DNA was extracted directly from environmental samples on which myxomycetes were not a...

A new species, Thozetella pinicola, was isolated from leaf litter of Pinus elliottii Engelm. in Hong Kong. This taxon is described and compared with existing species in the genus. It occurs on the substrate as creamy white sporodochia and has short black conidiophores. Morphological characters are typical of Thozetella and it most closely resembles...

The phylogenetic relationship of the family Magnaporthaceae and allied genera were investigated using individual and combined analyses of 18S and 28S nuclear ribosomal DNA (rDNA) gene fragments. New DNA sequences representing six genera from Magnaporthaceae were analyzed phylogenetically based on Bayesian, likelihood and parsimony methods. Magnapor...

Previous phylogenetic analyses of the Xylariaceae have mostly utilized ITS-5.8S gene sequences and there is no multi-gene study that have addressed evolutionary relationships. We conducted phylogenetic analyses with separate and combined sequences of ITS-5.8S rDNA, LSU rDNA, RPB2 and β-tubulin genes to re-evaluate the generic relationships within t...

Ten species belonging to, Arthrobotrys, Dactylellina and Dreschlerella were recorded from mangrove habitats in Hong Kong. These nematode-trapping fungi are characterised and illustrated and compared with freshwater and terrestrial stains. Conidial and conidiophore morphology of all the mangrove strains collected in present study fell within the ran...

Towards a phylogenetic clarification of Lophiostoma / Massarina and morphologically similar genera in the Pleosporales. Fungal Diversity 38: 225-251. Lophiostoma, Lophiotrema and Massarina are similar genera that are difficult to distinguish morphologically. In order to obtain a better understanding of these genera, lectotype material of the generi...

Arthrobotrys mangrovispora sp. nov. (fungi) isolated from decaying submerged wood in mangroves of Hong Kong is described and illustrated. The species closely resembles A. scaphoides and A. microscaphoides, but is distinguished by its conidial shape and size and septum number. Conidia vary in shape; they are broadly turbinate to elongate-fusoid, ran...

Nematode-trapping fungi are ubiquitous in terrestrial habitats in dung, soils, litter and woody debris and they also occur in freshwater, but only one species has been found in marine habitats. The purpose of this study was therefore to investigate whether nematode-trapping fungi occurred in mangrove habitats. To achieve this we assessed the divers...

Quintaria microsporum sp. nov., found on submerged wood of Fraxinus excelsior in the bed of a stream in Ariège, Rimont, Peyrau, France, is described, illustrated and compared with similar taxa. It is unique in Quintaria in having small ascospores and asci. A key to species of Quintaria is provided. This is the first record of a Quintaria species fr...

A collection of submerged wood samples in the Pyrénées, France, led to the discovery of a new freshwater Dothideomycetes genus. Amniculicola lignicola gen sp. nov, is described and illustrated. In addition, rDNA and RPB2 gene sequences are analysed phylogenetically to investigate its ordinal and familial placement. Morphologically, Amniculicola res...

GenBank, the public repository for nucleotide and protein sequences, is a critical resource for molecular biology, evolutionary biology, and ecology. While some attention has been drawn to sequence errors ([1][1]), common annotation errors also reduce the value of this database. In fact, for

GENBANK, THE PUBLIC REPOSITORY FOR nucleotide and protein sequences, is a critical resource for molecular biology, evolutionary biology, and ecology. While some attention has been drawn to sequence errors (1), com-mon annotation errors also reduce the value of this database. In fact, for organisms such as fungi, which are notoriously difficult to i...

Simmonds introduced Colletotrichum acutatum in 1965, validated in 1968, with a broad concept, as demonstrated by the selection of several type specimens from a range of hosts. This has created some confusion in the species concept and identification of C. acutatum. There are no viable ex-type cultures of C. acutatum and furthermore there are no exi...

Fungal isolates from chilli (Capsicum spp.) fruits in Thailand that showed typical anthracnose symptoms were identified as Colletotrichum acutatum, C. capsici and C. gloeosporioides. Phylogenetic analyses from DNA sequence data of ITS rDNA and β-tubulin (tub2) gene regions revealed three major clusters representing these three species. Among the mo...

A new genus of freshwater ascomycetes, Paoayensis lignicola collected from Paoay Lake in Ilocos Norte, in the Philippines is described and illustrated and compared with analogous taxa. Paoayensis lignicola is characterized by immersed, slightly erumpent ascomata with openings that fuse into a single ostiole. Asci are unitunicate, clavate and short...

Massariosphaeria is a loculoascomycetous fungus currently accommodated within the Pleosporales. However, based on morphology alone, it has been difficult to assess its familial position and its affinities to other fungi with bitunicate asci. In order to establish its evolutionary relationships, two regions of the rDNA (18S and 28S) and two regions...

Colletotrichum capsici is an economically important anamorphic taxon that causes anthracnose in chilli (Capsicum annuum, C. frutescens). Vermicularia capsici (= Colletotrichum capsici) deposited by H. Sydow in S was not designated as a holotype in the protologue and is, therefore, designated as the lectotype in this paper. The specimen is in relati...