The leading agaricologist Meinhard M. Moser died on 30 September 2002. He was a Centenary Fellow of the British Mycological Society, and the mentor of numerous students and colleagues throughout the world.

The ability of two non-aflatoxin producing strains of Aspergillus flavus to interfere with aflatoxin production by a toxigenic A. flavus strain was examined using a replacement series with suspended disc culture method. Individual glass fiber discs, affixed to a pin suspended from the caps of scintillation vials, were inoculated with medium containing A. flavus conidial mixtures in different proportions (aflatoxin producer[ratio ]non-producer=100[ratio ]0, 80[ratio ]20, 60[ratio ]40, 20[ratio ]80 and 0[ratio ]100 by vol) at a constant total density (1×105 spores ml−1). Reductions in the total conidial density of these strains when grown alone, had little effect on fungal growth (mycelium dry weight) or aflatoxin production. Significant (P<0.0001) reductions in aflatoxin B1 were recorded when non-toxigenic strains represented any proportion of the inoculum mixture. Aflatoxin yield values were less than (P<0.0001) expected from the input ratios for toxigenic vs. non-toxigenic conidial inoculum within the replacement series. Aflatoxin yields were also reduced (P<0.001), with a corresponding increase in fungal growth (P<0.001), when conidia from aflatoxin producing strains were mixed in equal proportions. This suggests that the substantial inhibition of aflatoxin yield for inoculum mixtures results from the failure of spore germlings to establish a cooperative mycelial network.

Mycological Research107 (8): 901–916 (August 2003).

In the review paper by Tehler, Little & Farris, ‘The full-length phylogenetic tree from 1551 ribosomal sequences of chitinous fungi, Fungi’, two parts of Fig. 4 were omitted and incorrectly replaced by other parts of the figure during printing after checking by the authors and Executive Editor.

The Publishers wish to apologise for this mistake, and regret the inevitable inconvenience and confusion caused by those wishing to interpret this Figure.

Sooty moulds are described and illustrated from European amber dating back to 22–54 Myr. All the fossils are fragments of superficial subicula composed of brown moniliform hyphae with markedly tapering distal ends. The subglobose cells are identical to those of extant Metacapnodium (Metacapnodiaceae, Capnodiales) species. Also other preserved features, like the type of apical growth, wide-angled branching and the production of two distinctive conidial states, supports a placement in this genus. The fossils demonstrate that Metacapnodium hyphae have remained unchanged for tens of millions of years. This confirms that hyphal morphology and conidial states should be accorded considerable classificatory significance in this group of fungi. The following nomenclatural change is made: Metacapnodium succinum comb. nov. (syn. Rosaria succina). The type specimen was initially described as a filamentous cyanobacterium, due to similarities with Rosaria ramosa. Also the systematic position of this attribute is shortly discussed.

Field surveys were carried out in coffee plantations in Chiapas, Mexico, to collect and identify fungi associated with the cuticle, gut, faeces and galleries of the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei. Insects and coffee berries containing galleries were collected in three coffee farms at different altitudes: Rosario Izapa (425 m), La Alianza (700 m) and Monteperla (950 m). An additional sample consisting of coffee berry borers reared in the laboratory on meridic diets was also included. Results show that there is a great diversity of fungi associated with this insect. 212 cultures, including 40 species distributed in 22 genera, were isolated. The recovery of fungi from the galleries was markedly less than from the borer's body. Three of the isolated species were undescribed; two belonging to the Penicillium and one to Hanseniaspora. Most of the species were collected from the cuticle of the insect, and the presence of fungi was not correlated with altitude. Fusarium, Penicillium, Candida and Aspergillus were the dominant genera with percentage abundance of 26.4, 18.7, 13.4 and 12.5%, respectively. The present study provides a detailed description of the mycobiota associated with H. hampei and represents a significant advance in the understanding of the relationship among this insect and the fungi associated with it.

Sclerotinia minor accumulates β-carotene at levels dependent upon oxidative growth conditions and differentiation. β-carotene accumulation is 2.5-fold higher in differentiated mycelia at high than at low oxidative stress, and approx. 3-fold higher in differentiated than in undifferentiated mycelia. It is proposed that β-carotene may be produced by the fungus to counteract oxidative stress that develops during growth. This is shown by the finding that exogenous β-carotene at growth non-inhibiting concentrations causes a concentration-dependent reduction of oxidative stress (lipid and protein peroxidation) and sclerotial differentiation in this fungus. The data of this study support our hypothesis that sclerotial differentiation in phytopathogenic fungi may be induced by oxidative stress.

During an investigation of mycoparasitic fungi on sclerotia of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum in China, a new fungal species was consistently encountered and isolated from natural soils taken from soybean fields of Shandong and Jiangsu Provinces. The fungus is featured by its sphaeroid conidia with 1–2 transverse septa, but mostly (>65%) with only one septum at the base. It resembles Monacrosporium indicum, M. sphaeroides and M. sinense, but can be distinguished from the first two species by lack of basal hila and large vacuoles on its conidia, respectively, and from M. sinense by its typically two-celled and broadly turbinate to napiform conidia. Colonization frequencies on S. sclerotiorum sclerotia by the new species were 10% and 33.3% in the two field soils, respectively, when the sclerotia were introduced into soils and coincubated at 22–24 °C for 4 wk. Reinoculation tests by placing surface-sterilized sclerotia onto the tested isolate colony for 2 wk and then surface-sterilized again resulted in 23.3% sclerotia colonized. Microscopic observations indicated that the fungus coiled around hyphae of Rhizoctonia solani and grew along and appressed to hyphae of Fusarium solani f.sp. pisi, S. sclerotiorum and Phytophthora cactorum when dual-cultured in slides. Tests on agar plates demonstrated that the fungus formed adhesive networks and was an active predator of Panagrellus redivivus. This study indicated the diverse mechanisms for the fungus to survive in soil. For expression of its mycoparasitic and nematode-trapping capacities, the fungus is named as Monacrosporium janus.

Almost 900 species were encountered during a seven year survey of fungal fruit bodies in 13 forests and grasslands plots measuring about 1 ha. The data were comparable to those from a Swiss forest plot monitored for 21 years. Species richness and abundance were almost linearly correlated on a log/log scale. Abundance and yearly frequency of species were tightly correlated. The geographic range of species may also be related to these two parameters. Rare species scored low on abundance, yearly frequency and geographic range. About half of the species were rare, and occurred in only one out of seven years. The two major functional groups of saprotrophic and mycorrhizal species behaved similarly over the years, as in the Swiss study.

Annual variation was high for species richness alone and for richness combined with abundances. The log transformed species richness of plots correlated well with parameters that take the abundances or yearly frequencies of species into account. If other mushroom assemblages show similar regularities, it may be possible to omit abundance counts in future surveys. The species composition of the plots varied strongly over the years. Many species did not reach their maximum abundance in the richest year. Species showed their maximum abundances in different plots in the same year more often than expected by chance. Thus the presence and abundance of species depended on factor(s) other than the general productivity of a year, and years showed (a) different aspect(s) than productivity alone. Long-term surveys are important for understanding the structure of mushroom assemblages and their biodiversity.