| Clavicipitaceae | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Claviceps purpurea | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Sordariomycetes |
| Order: | Hypocreales |
| Family: | Clavicipitaceae (Lindau) Earle (1901) |
| Type genus | |
| Claviceps Tul. (1853) | |
| Genera | |
See text | |
The Clavicipitaceae are a family of fungi within the order Hypocreales. A 2008 estimate placed 43 genera in the family, [1] but a study in 2020 has increased this number to 50. [2]
Molecular phylogenetic analysis of multigene DNA sequence data indicates the taxon Clavicipitaceae is paraphyletic, and consists of three well-defined clades, at least one of which is shared with members of another fungal family (Hypocreaceae). [3] The evolution within the Clavicipitaceae is marked by interkingdom host jumping, and the range of this large and heterogeneous fungal group spans mutualistic plant symbionts, as well as parasites of plants, insects, and other fungi. [4]
Many of its members produce alkaloids toxic to animals and humans. One of its most infamous species is Claviceps purpurea , which has historical significance as the cause of St. Anthony's fire, also known as ergotism. Ergotism is caused by ergot alkaloids, such as ergotamine and ergocristine, which are chemical derivatives of lysergic acid. Metarhizium species are widely used in the biological control of insect pests. [5]
Several genera, especially those previously described as "anamorphic" (having no known sexual cycle) are now re-classified into other families, in light of current molecular and other evidence. As of November 2024, the following genera are placed in the family Clavicipitaceae: [6]
Cordyceps is a genus of ascomycete fungi that includes about 750 species worldwide, 200 of these species are parasitic. Diverse variants of cordyceps have had more than 1,500 years of use in Chinese medicine. Most Cordyceps species are endoparasitoids, parasitic mainly on insects and other arthropods ; a few are parasitic on other fungi.
Metarhizium is a genus of entomopathogenic fungi in the family Clavicipitaceae. With the advent of genetic profiling, placing these fungi in proper taxa has now become possible. Most turn out to be the asexual forms (anamorphs) of fungi in the phylum Ascomycota, including Metacordyceps spp.
Hirsutella is a genus of asexually reproducing fungi in the Ophiocordycipitaceae family. Originally described by French mycologist Narcisse Théophile Patouillard in 1892, this genus includes species that are pathogens of insects, mites and nematodes; there is interest in the use of these fungi as biological controls of insect and nematode pests. The teleomorphs of Hirsutella species are thought to belong to the genus Ophiocordyceps.
Ascopolyporus is a genus of fungi within the family Cordycipitaceae. Species are pathogens of scale insects.
Metacordyceps is a genus of fungi in the family Clavicipitaceae. The anamorphs of Metacordyceps appear to include Metarhizium species.
Ophiocordycipitaceae is a family of parasitic fungi in the phylum Ascomycota, class Sordariomycetes. It was updated in 2020.
Podonectria is a genus in the monotypic Podonectriaceae family of fungi. They are parasitic fungus on scale insects, other fungi, or on substrates that had previously colonized by other fungi.
Lecanicillium lecanii is now an approved name of an entomopathogenic fungus species, that was previously widely known as Verticillium lecanii (Zimmerman) Viegas), but is now understood to be an anamorphic form in the Cordyceps group of genera in the Clavicipitaceae. Isolates formerly classified as V. lecanii could be L. attenuatum, L. lecanii, L. longisporum, L. muscarium or L. nodulosum. For example, several recent papers, such as Kouvelis et al. who carried out mitochondrial DNA studies, refer to the name L. muscarium.
Purpureocillium is a fungal genus in the Ophiocordycipitaceae family. The genus now contains at least 5 species with the type species Purpureocillium lilacinum, a common soil mold. It has been isolated from a wide range of habitats, including cultivated and uncultivated soils, forests, grassland, deserts, estuarine sediments and sewage sludge, and insects. It has also been found in nematode eggs, and occasionally from females of root-knot and cyst nematodes. In addition, it has frequently been detected in the rhizosphere of many crops. The species can grow at a wide range of temperatures – from 8 to 38 °C for a few isolates, with optimal growth in the range 26 to 30 °C. It also has a wide pH tolerance and can grow on a variety of substrates. P. lilacinum has shown promising results for use as a biocontrol agent to control the growth of destructive root-knot nematodes.
Hymenostilbe is a genus of fungi in the Ophiocordycipitaceae family. All members are anamorph names of Ophiocordyceps.
Paraisaria is a genus of fungi in the Ophiocordycipitaceae family. Members are anamorph names of Ophiocordyceps.
Tolypocladium is a genus of fungi within the family Ophiocordycipitaceae. It includes species that are parasites of other fungi, insect pathogens, rotifer pathogens and soil inhabiting species with uncertain ecological roles.
Ophiocordyceps myrmecophila, commonly known as the ant fungus or ant eater, is a species of fungus that parasitizes insect hosts, in particular members of the order Hymenoptera.
Tolypocladium ophioglossoides, also known by two of its better known synonyms Elaphocordyceps ophioglossoides and Cordyceps ophioglossoides and commonly known as the goldenthread cordyceps, is a species of fungus in the family Ophiocordycipitaceae. It is parasitic on fruit bodies of the truffle-like Elaphomyces. The species is considered inedible, but is valued in traditional Chinese medicine.
The Cordycipitaceae are a family of parasitic fungi in the Ascomycota, class Sordariomycetes and order Hypocreales. The family was first published in 1969 by mycologist Hanns Kreisel, but the naming was invalid according to the code of International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants. It was validly published in 2007.
Ophiocordyceps formicarum is an entomopathogenic fungus belonging to the order Hypocreales (Ascomycota) in the family Ophiocordycipitaceae. The fungus was first described by mycologist George S. Kobayashi in 1939 as a species of Cordyceps. Originally found in Japan growing on an adult Hercules ant, it was reported from Guizhou, China, in 2003. It was transferred to the new genus Ophiocordyceps in 2007 when the family Cordycipitaceae was reorganized. A technique has been developed to grow the fungus in an agar growth medium supplemented with yeast extract, inosine, and glucose.
Clonostachys is a genus of fungi in the order Hypocreales and family Bionectriaceae.
Hypocrella is a genus of fungi in the family Clavicipitaceae.
Akanthomyces is a genus of fungi belonging to the family Cordycipitaceae and consisting of parasites of spiders and Lepidoptera.
Polycephalomyces is a genus of fungi in the family Ophiocordycipitaceae.
Media related to Clavicipitaceae at Wikimedia Commons
Data related to Clavicipitaceae at Wikispecies