''Rasamsonia'' 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 ...

fungi A fungus (: fungi , , , or ; or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as one ...

in the family

Trichocomaceae The Trichocomaceae are a family of fungi in the order Eurotiales. Taxa are saprobes with aggressive colonization strategies, adaptable to extreme environmental conditions. Family members are cosmopolitan in distribution, ubiquitous in soil, and ...

circumscribed In geometry, a circumscribed circle for a set of points is a circle passing through each of them. Such a circle is said to ''circumscribe'' the points or a polygon formed from them; such a polygon is said to be ''inscribed'' in the circle. * Circum ...

in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species are thermotolerant or

thermophilic A thermophile is a type of extremophile that thrives at relatively high temperatures, between . Many thermophiles are archaea, though some of them are bacteria and fungi. Thermophilic eubacteria are suggested to have been among the earliest bact ...

; their

conidiophore A conidium ( ; : conidia), sometimes termed an asexual chlamydospore or chlamydoconidium (: chlamydoconidia), is an Asexual reproduction, asexual, non-motility, motile spore of a fungus. The word ''conidium'' comes from the Ancient Greek word f ...

s have distinctly rough-walled stipes;

conidia A conidium ( ; : conidia), sometimes termed an asexual chlamydospore or chlamydoconidium (: chlamydoconidia), is an asexual, non- motile spore of a fungus. The word ''conidium'' comes from the Ancient Greek word for dust, ('). They are also ...

are olive brown; and

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 ...

, if present, have minimal covering. ''Rasamsonia'' phenotypically resembles ''

Paecilomyces ''Paecilomyces'' is a genus of fungi. A number of species in this genus are plant pathogens. Several of the entomopathogenic fungi, entomopathogenic species, such as "''Paecilomyces fumosoroseus''" have now been placed in the genus ''Isaria'', ...

'', in that both have thermotolerant species, produce olive-brown conidia, and form ascomata with no or scarce ascomatal covering; ''Rasamsonia'', however, differs from ''Paecilomyces'' in having more regularly branched conidiophores with distinct rough-walled structures. 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 ...

is '' Rasamsonia emersonii'', a fungus formerly classified in the genus ''

Talaromyces ''Talaromyces'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae. Described in 1955 by American mycologist Chester Ray Benjamin, species in the genus form soft, cottony fruit bodies ( ascocarps) with cell walls made of tightly interwoven hyphae ...

''.

Clinical relevance

Due to an increase in reports of human and animal

mycosis Fungal infection, also known as mycosis, is a disease caused by fungi. Different types are traditionally divided according to the part of the body affected: superficial, subcutaneous, and systemic. Superficial fungal infections include common ...

by '' Rasamsonia argillacea'' (formerly ''

Geosmithia ''Geosmithia'' is a genus of anamorphic fungi of uncertain familial placement in the order Hypocreales. The genus, circumscribed by Australian mycologist John Pitt in 1979, is widely distributed. A 2008 estimate placed ten species in the genus, ...

argillacea''), it has been considered an emerging pathogen. In 2013,

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 was used to identify four species in the ''R. argillacea''

species complex In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

, including ''R. eburnea'', and the newly described ''R. piperina'' and ''R. aegroticola''. These fungi, which can be identified with

internal transcribed spacer Internal transcribed spacer (ITS) is the spacer DNA situated between the small-subunit ribosomal RNA (rRNA) and large-subunit rRNA genes in the chromosome or the corresponding transcribed region in the polycistronic rRNA precursor transcript. ...

sequences, have similar

antifungal An antifungal medication, also known as an antimycotic medication, is a pharmaceutical fungicide or fungistatic used to treat and prevent mycosis such as athlete's foot, ringworm, candidiasis (thrush), serious systemic infections such as ...

susceptibility profiles.

Species

*''

Rasamsonia aegroticola ''Rasamsonia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae, circumscribed in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species a ...

'' Houbraken, S.Giraud & Samson (2012) *'' Rasamsonia argillacea'' (Stolk, H.C.Evans & T. Nilsson) Houbraken & Frisvad (2011) *''

Rasamsonia brevistipitata ''Rasamsonia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae, circumscribed in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species a ...

'' Houbraken & Frisvad (2011) *''

Rasamsonia byssochlamydoides ''Rasamsonia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae, circumscribed in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species a ...

'' (Stolk & Samson) Houbraken & Frisvad (2011) *''

Rasamsonia columbiensis ''Rasamsonia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae, circumscribed in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species a ...

'' Jurjević, Hubka & S.W.Peterson (2016) *''

Rasamsonia composticola ''Rasamsonia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae, circumscribed in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species a ...

'' Y.Y.Su & L.Cai (2012) *''

Rasamsonia cylindrospora ''Rasamsonia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae, circumscribed in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species a ...

'' (G.Sm.) Houbraken & Frisvad (2011) *'' Rasamsonia eburnea'' (Yaguchi, Someya & Udagawa) Houbraken & Frisvad (2011) *'' Rasamsonia emersonii'' (Stolk) Houbraken & Frisvad (2011) *'' Rasamsonia piperina'' Houbraken, S.Giraud & Samson (2012) *''

Rasamsonia pulvericola ''Rasamsonia'' is a genus of fungi in the family Trichocomaceae, circumscribed in 2011 by mycologists Jos Houbraken and Jens Frisvad. It is characterized from other genera of the Trichocomaceae by the following combination of features: species a ...

'' J.B.Tanney & K.A.Seifert (2013)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q21213873 Eurotiomycetes genera Trichocomaceae Taxa described in 2011