Skip to main content
ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #207852
Title: A Higher-Level Phylogenetic Classification of the Fungi

Author
item HIBBETT, DAVID - CLARK UNIV.,WORCHESTER,MA
item Aime, Mary
item Castlebury, Lisa
item Humber, Richard
item Kurtzman, Cletus

Submitted to: Mycological Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/25/2006
Publication Date: 10/19/2006
Citation: Hibbett, S.A., Binder, M., Bischoff, J. F., Blackwell, M., Cannon, P. F., Eriksson, O. E., Huhndorf, S., James, T., Kirk, P. M., Lücking, R., H. Lumbsch, T., Lutzoni , F., Matheny, P. B., Mclaughlin, D. J., Powell, M. J., Redhead , S., Schoch, C. L., Spatafora, J. W., Stalpers, J. A., Vilgalys, R., Aime, M. C., Aptroot, A., Bauer, R., Begerow, D., Benny, G. L., Castlebury, L. A., Crous, P. W., Dai, Y.-C., Gams, W., Geiser, D. M., Griffith, G. W., Gueidan, C., Hawksworth, D. L., Hestmark, G., Hosaka, K., Humber, R. A. , Hyde, K. D., Ironside, J. E., KLõljalg, U., Kurtzman, C. P., Larsson, K.-H., Lichtwardt, R., Longcore, J., Mi¿dlikowska, J., Miller, A. Moncalvo, J.-M., Mozley-Standridge, S., Oberwinkler, F., Parmasto, E., Reeb, V., Rogers, J. D., Roux, C., Ryvarden, L., Sampaio, J. P., Schüßler, A., Sugiyama, J., Thorn, R. G., Tibell, L., Untereiner, W. A., Walker, C., Wang, Z., Weir, A., Weiss, M., White, M. M., Winka, K., Yao, Y.-J., and Zhang, N. 2007. A higher-level phylogenetic classification of the Fungi. Mycological Research. 111:509-547.

Interpretive Summary: Fungi cause billions of dollars damage to agricultural crops each year. In addition, the presence of certain fungi can greatly hinder the export of agricultural commodities from the U.S. to other countries. In order to control diseases caused by fungi both in the U.S. and abroad it is necessary to identify and characterize the fungi that cause diseases of crops. Some fungi are useful to humanity such as the yeast fungi used in making beer, bread and many other food products. In this paper the higher classification of the true fungi is determined based on modern techniques of sequencing portions of the genome. These sequences are compared in order to determine what major groups of fungi exist. In this paper all the major groups of fungi have been named including those that include plant pathogenic and yeast fungi. Knowledge of the major groups of true fungi and their characteristics will be used by plant pathologists who breed for resistance to the diseases caused by fungi.

Technical Abstract: A comprehensive phylogenetic classification of the Fungi is proposed, with reference to recent molecular phylogenetic analyses, and with input from members of the fungal taxonomic community. The classification includes 196 taxa, down to the level of order, of which 23 are described or are validated in the present publication (Dikarya subkingdom nov., Chytridiomycota, Microsporidiomycota, Neocallimastigomycota phyla nov., Agaricomycetes, Dacrymycetes, Laboulbeniomycetes, Monoblepharidomycetes, Neocallimastigomycetes, Tremellomycetes class. nov., Agaricomycetidae, Eurotiomycetidae,Lecanoromycetidae, Mycocaliciomycetidae subclass. nov., Acarosporales, Corticiales, Baeomycetales, Candelariales, Gloeophyllales, Melanosporales, Saccharomycetales, Trechisporales, Umbilicariales ords. nov.). The clade containing Ascomycota and Basidiomycota is classified as subkingdom Dikarya, reflecting the putative synapomorphy of dikaryotic hyphae. The most dramatic shifts in the classification relative to previous works concern the groups that have traditionally been included in the Chytridiomycota and Zygomycota. The Chytridiomycota is retained in a restricted sense, with Blastocladiomycota and Neocallimastigomycota representing segregate phyla of flagellated Fungi. Taxa traditionally placed in Zygomycota are distributed among Glomeromycota and several subphyla incertae sedis, including Mucoromycotina, Entomophthoromycotina, Kickxellomycotina, and Zoopagomycotina. Microsporidia are included as Microsporidiomycota, but no further subdivision of the group is proposed.