''Fomitopsis'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of more than 40 species of bracket fungi in the family

Fomitopsidaceae The Fomitopsidaceae are a family (biology), family of fungi in the order Polyporales. Most species are parasitic on woody plants, and tend to cause Wood-decay fungus#Brown rot, brown rots. The name comes from ''Fomitopsis'' (meaning "looking like ...

Taxonomy

The genus was circumscribed by Finnish mycologist

Petter Karsten Petter Adolf Karsten (16 February 1834 – 22 March 1917) was a Finnish mycologist, the foremost expert on the fungi of Finland in his day, and known in consequence as the "father of Finnish mycology". Karsten was born in Merimasku near Turku ...

in 1881 with '' Fomitopsis pinicola'' as the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

Molecular A molecule is a group of two or more atoms that are held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions that satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, ...

analysis indicates that ''Fomitopsis'' belongs to the antrodia clade, which contains about 70 percent of brown-rot fungi. Other genera that join ''Fomitopsis'' in the core antrodia group include '' Amyloporia'', '' Antrodia'', '' Daedalea'', '' Melanoporia'', '' Piptoporus'', and '' Rhodonia''. Studies have indicated that ''Fomitopsis'' and ''Piptoporus'' were

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics () is the study of the evolutionary history of life using observable characteristics of organisms (or genes), which is known as phylogenetic inference. It infers the relationship among organisms based on empirical dat ...

ally heterogenous, and the

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * ...

of that genus, ''

Piptoporus betulinus ''Fomitopsis betulina'' (previously ''Piptoporus betulinus''), commonly known as the birch polypore, birch bracket, or razor strop, is a common bracket fungus and, as the name suggests, grows almost exclusively on birch trees. The brackets bur ...

'', is in the ''Fomitopsis'' core group. This fungus, well known for its use by

Ötzi the Iceman Ötzi, also called The Iceman, is the natural mummy of a man who lived between 3350 and 3105 BC. Ötzi's remains were discovered on 19 September 1991, in the Ötztal Alps (hence the nickname "Ötzi", ) at the Austria–Italy border. He ...

, was transferred to ''Fomitopsis'' in 2016. The whole genome sequence of '' Fomitopsis palustris'' was reported in 2017. The generic name combines the name '' Fomes'' with the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

word ("appearance").

Description

''Fomitopsis'' species have fruit bodies that are mostly

perennial In horticulture, the term perennial ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the year") is used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. It has thus been defined as a plant that lives more than 2 years. The term is also ...

, with forms ranging from sessile to effused-reflexed (partially crust-like and partially pileate). Fruit body texture is typically tough to woody, and the pore surface is white to tan or pinkish-colored with mostly small and regular pores. Microscopically, ''Fomitopsis'' has a dimitic

hypha A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one o ...

l system with clamped generative hyphae. The

spores In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many plant ...

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 ...

, thin-walled, smooth, roughly spherical to cylindrical, and are negative in

Melzer's reagent Melzer's reagent (also known as Melzer's iodine reagent, Melzer's solution or informally as Melzer's) is a chemical reagent used by mycologists to assist with the identification of fungi, and by phytopathologists for fungi that are plant pathogens ...

. ''Fomitopsis'' fungi cause a brown rot.

Species

More than 40 species have been accepted in ''Fomitopsis''.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q337947 Polyporales genera Taxa named by Petter Adolf Karsten Taxa described in 1881