The Terfeziaceae, or desert truffles, is a family of
truffles
A truffle is the fruiting body of a subterranean ascomycete fungus, one of the species of the genus ''Tuber''. More than one hundred other genera of fungi are classified as truffles including '' Geopora'', '' Peziza'', '' Choiromyces'', and ' ...
(, , , ) endemic to arid and semi-arid areas of the
Mediterranean Region,
North Africa
North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...
, and the
Middle East
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
, where they live in
ectomycorrhizal
An ectomycorrhiza (from Greek ἐκτός ', "outside", μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; ectomycorrhizas or ectomycorrhizae, abbreviated EcM) is a form of symbiotic relationship that occurs between a fungal symbiont, or mycobion ...
association with ''
Helianthemum
''Helianthemum'' (), known as rock rose, sunrose, rushrose, or frostweed, '' species and other ectomycorrhizal plants (including ''
Cistus
''Cistus'' (from the Greek ''kistos'') is a genus of flowering plants in the rockrose family Cistaceae, containing about 20 species (Ellul ''et al.'' 2002). They are perennial shrubs found on dry or rocky soils throughout the Mediterranean reg ...
'', oaks, and pines). This group consists of three genera: ''
Terfezia
''Terfezia'' (Berber language, Berber: Tirfas) is a genus of truffle-like fungi within the Pezizaceae family. ''Terfezia'' species are common name, commonly known as desert truffles. Some authorities consider this the type (biology), type genus o ...
'', ''Tirmania'', and ''Mattirolomyces''. They are a few centimetres across and weigh from 30 to 300 grams (1–10 oz). Desert truffles are often used as a culinary ingredient.
Description
Fruit-bodies (
ascomata
An ascocarp, or ascoma (: ascomata), is the fruiting body (sporocarp (fungi), sporocarp) of an ascomycete phylum fungus. It consists of very tightly interwoven hyphae and millions of embedded ascus, asci, each of which typically contains four to ...
) are large, more or less spherical to turbinate (
top
Top most commonly refers to:
* Top, a basic term of orientation, distinguished from bottom, front, back, and sides
* Spinning top, a ubiquitous traditional toy
* Top (clothing), clothing designed to be worn over the torso
* Mountain top, a moun ...
-shaped), thick-walled, and solid. The
asci are formed in marbled veins interspersed with sterile tissue. The asci are cylindrical to spherical, indehiscent (not splitting open at maturity), and sometimes stain blue in iodine. Ascospores are
hyaline
A hyaline substance is one with a glassy appearance. The word is derived from , and .
Histopathology
Hyaline cartilage is named after its glassy appearance on fresh gross pathology. On light microscopy of H&E stained slides, the extracellula ...
to pale brown, spherical, and