Epicoccum
Epicoccum Link, Mag. Gesell. naturf. Freunde, Berlin 7: 32 (1816) [1815].
Index Fungorum number: IF 8188; Facesoffungi number: FoF 08222, 71 morphological species (Species Fungorum 2022), 30 species with molecular data.
Saprobic or pathogenic on host. Asexual morph: Conidiomata pycnidial, globose to subglobose, or to irregularly shaped, superficial on or immersed into the agar, solitary or confluent. Ostioles papillate or non-papillate, sometimes on pronounced necks. Pycnidial wall pseudoparenchymatous, 2–9- layered, outer wall brown olivaceous. Conidiogenous cells phialidic, hyaline, smooth, ampulliform, globose to flask-shaped. Conidia variable in shape and size, hyaline or in later stages a slight brownish pigmentation may be found, smooth- and thin-walled, i.e. ovoid, ellipsoidal to oblong, (sub-)cylindrical, sometimes slightly curved, always aseptate. Synasexual morph: Sporodochia semi-immersed, scattered or aggregated, clavate. Conidia multicellular-phragmosporous, but septa being obscured by the dark verrucose wall, subglobose-pyriform, often with a basal cell, variable in dimensions, arising in gradually growing clusters as solitary, terminal elements of mycelial branches, from a more or less globose pseudoparenchymatous stroma. Chlamydospores variable and irregular, unicellular or multicellular, intercalary or terminal, solitary or in chains, smooth, verrucose or incidentally tuberculate, subhyaline to dark brown, where multicellular globose or irregular shaped, dictyosporous or botryoid (adapted from Aveskamp et al. 2010, Chen et al. 2015).
Type species: Epicoccum nigrum Link
Notes: Epicoccum is characterised by pycnidial, globose to subglobose conidiomata, smooth, ampulliform, globose to flask-shaped conidiogenous cells, ovoid, ellipsoidal to oblong, (sub-) cylindrical conidia. The synasexual morph is characterised by semi-immersed, scattered or aggregated, clavate sporodochia, multicellular-phragmosporous conidia and produces variable and irregular, unicellular or multicellular, subhyaline to dark brown, dictyosporous or botryoid chlamydospores. Aveskamp et al. (2010) emended the generic concept of Epicoccum, added two new combinations for Phoma pimprina and Ph. sorghina and accepted the genus in Didymellaceae. Chen et al. (2015) added five Phoma species into Epicoccum and emended the generic circumscription to include taxa with epicoccoid conidia as well as pycnidial conidiomata and subcylindrical conidia. Epicoccum is morphologically and phylogenetically a distinct genus in Didymellaceae but needs revision as several taxa lack sequence data. Molecular markers available for Epicoccum are ITS, LSU, SSU, Actin, BTUB and RPB2.
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