Jan Borovička- Ph.D.
- Researcher at The Czech Academy of Sciences
Jan Borovička
- Ph.D.
- Researcher at The Czech Academy of Sciences
About
141
Publications
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Introduction
I am interested in trace element accumulation in macrofungi/ectomycorrhizae, metal sequestration and transport in fungal tissues, formation of mycogenic minerals, fungal-driven isotopic fractionation, and other geomycological areas. Furthermore, I am interested in systematics and ecology of macrofungi (particularly Psilocybe, Agaricus, Russula, Pluteus, Thelephora, and Amanita). I also investigate distribution and mobility of metals in soils (Ag, As, Cd, Pb, U).
Current institution
Additional affiliations
January 2004 - present
Nuclear Physics Institute, , Czech The Academy of Sciences
Position
- Researcher
September 2007 - present
Institute of Geology, Czech The Academy of Sciences
Position
- Researcher
January 2005 - December 2007
Education
January 2000 - August 2007
Field of study
- environmental geology and geochemistry, management of natural resources
Publications
Publications (141)
Synthetic psilocybin (PSB), but also the PSB-containing mushrooms are used for psychedelic therapy and microdosing. It is necessary to know alkaloids variability and stability in wild-grown mushrooms. Concentrations of other psychotropic (or potentially psychotropic) tryptamines such as psilocin (PS), baeocystin (BA), norbaeocystin (NB), and aerugi...
The gilled mushroom Agaricus crocodilinus (Agaricaceae) analyzed in this study hyperaccumulated Cd and showed common Zn and very low Mn concentrations. To gain an insight into the handling of heavy metals in this saprotrophic species, its two genes of the cation diffusion facilitator (CDF) protein family were isolated, AcCDF1 and AcCDF2, encoding t...
Abstract: Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Antarctica, Leuconeurospora bharatiensis from accumulated snow sediment sample. Argentina, Pseudocercospora quetri on leaf spots of Luma apiculata. Australia, Polychaetomyces verrucosus on submerged decaying wood in sea water, Ustilaginoidea co...
Sarcosphaera (Ascomycota : Pezizales) is a genus of rare spring fungi, currently encompassing a single species, S. coronaria, which is red-listed in many European countries. The genus is characterized by large bright-colored fruit-bodies and high arsenic content. This study investigates the genetic diversity across Europe and North America. Using i...
Published in Příroda, Praha, 46: 48–192, 2024; available online as open access PDF file: https://www.priroda.nature.cz/index.php/priroda/article/view/70. --- The List of Macromycetes of the Czech Republic is the first red list concerning fungi following the IUCN guidelines in the country. It includes 1676 taxa (32 RE, 190 CR, 330 EN, 325 VU, 238 NT...
Amanita amplivelata is introduced as a new species, based on numerous collections from geographically distant areas of Europe and the Near East (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, France and Türkiye). This new species is likely ectomycorrhizal with Populus spp. in natural poplar stands, urban settings, and plantations. Detailed description and illustrat...
Fungi are an integral part of the nitrogen and phosphorus cycling in trophic networks, as they participate in biomass decomposition and facilitate plant nutrition through root symbioses. Nutrient content varies considerably between the main fungal habitats, such as soil, plant litter or decomposing dead wood, but there are also large differences wi...
Wild boars have been reported as bioindicators for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in a variety of studies. However, data about PFAS levels in wild boars from sites with limited industrial and general human activity is scarce. In this study, wild boar (Sus scrofa) organs from the Bohemian Forest National Park (Czech Republic) were used a...
Fungi are an integral part of the nitrogen and phosphorus cycling in trophic networks, as they participate in biomass decomposition and facilitate plant nutrition through root symbioses. Nutrient content varies considerably between the main fungal habitats, such as soil, plant litter or decomposing dead wood, but there are also large differences wi...
The total arsenic mass fraction as well as the arsenic speciation were studied in four different mushroom species with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, respectively. Arsenic mass fractions detected in the mushrooms were covering a range f...
We studied the taxonomy of Pluteus podospileus and similar species using morphological and molecular (nrITS, TEF1-α) data, including a detailed study of the type collections of P. inflatus var. alneus, Pluteus minutissimus f. major, and P. granulatus var. tenellus. Within the P. podospileus complex, we phylogenetically confirmed six species in Euro...
The Silver Fir (Abies alba) - is a coniferous tree which is known to associate with a number of mycorrhizal and saprotrophic mushroom species and which, unfortunately, was recorded as suffering a significant decline in occurrence during the 20th century. The author describes his experience with fir and mushroom populations in Central Bohemia in are...
The Blusher (Amanita rubescens) is a popular edible mushroom in the Czech Republic but poisonings by the Panthercap (Amanita pantherina), which is confused with this mushroom, occur every year. In this paper, the author describes a mushroom poisoning reported in the media in the summer of 2021. It has been
concluded however, on the basis of photo d...
Microfungi colonising coniferous needles in litter were intensively studied in previous decades, but forest stands on serpentine soils have been overlooked. Also, the effects of microclimatic conditions on fungal communities in coniferous litter are unknown. In our study, we aimed to characterise communities of culturable microfungi colonising pine...
Since not only psilocybin (PSB) but also PSB-containing mushrooms are used for psychedelic therapy and microdosing, it is necessary to know their concentration variability in wild-grown mushrooms. This article aimed to determine the PSB, psilocin (PS), baeocystin (BA), norbaeocystin (NB), and aeruginascin (AE) concentrations in a large sample set o...
Thelephora penicillata is an ectomycorrhizal mushroom that can accumulate extraordinarily high concentrations of of Cd, As, Cu, and Zn in its fruit-bodies. To better understand its element accumulation ability, we compared the element concentrations in T. penicillata with 10 distinct ectomycorrhizal mushroom species growing at the same
site (Karlin...
Amanita muscaria is an ectomycorrhizal mushroom that commonly grows at metal-polluted sites. Sporocarps from the lead smelter-polluted area near Příbram (Central Bohemia, Czech Republic) showed elevated concentrations of Cd and Zn. Size exclusion chromatography of the cell extracts of the sporocarps from both polluted and unpolluted sites indicated...
Mycopan is a genus established for Hydropus scabripes by Redhead, Moncalvo & Vilgalys (in Redhead 2013). They considered the genus to be distinct based on morphology and the phylogenetic analysis by Moncalvo et al. (2002) which included a sequence
of Hydropus scabripes (AF042635, DAOM 192847) unrelated to the type species of Hydropus (H. fuliginari...
The genus Morchella has gone through turbulent taxonomic treatments. Although significant progress in Morchella systematics has been achieved in the past decade, several problems remain unresolved and taxonomy in the genus is still in flux. In late 2019, a paper published in the open-access journal Scientific Reports raised serious concerns about t...
This is a point-by-point rebuttal of the paper entitled “High diversity of Morchella and a novel lineage of the esculenta clade from the north Qinling Mountains revealed by GCPSR-based study” by Phanpadith et al. (2019), published in the Open-Access journal Scientific Reports (2019, 9:19856). The present critique is published as supplementary to th...
Gymnopilus stabilis (Fungi, Agaricales), a very rare species of unclear identity described from Europe, was revised using morphological data and phylogenetic affiliations derived from ITS rDNA sequences. Collections from the Czech Republic, Germany, and Russia plus reference vouchers of related or similar species were studied. Gymnopilus stabilis s...
Fruit-bodies of six Thelephora species (Fungi, Basidiomycota, Thelephoraceae) were analyzed for their trace element concentrations. In Thelephora penicillata, extremely high concentrations of Cd and As were found, followed by highly elevated concentrations of Cu and Zn. The highest accumulation ability was found for Cd with a mean concentration of...
Russula albonigra is considered a well-known species, morphologically delimited by the context of the basidiomata blackening without intermediate reddening, and the menthol-cooling taste of the lamellae. It is supposed to have a broad ecological range and a large distribution area. A thorough molecular analysis based on four nuclear markers (ITS, L...
Following the publication of the original article [1], we were notified of a few inconsistencies between the pdf version and the html version with regards to the Key to the European species of Russula subgen. Compactae (pg. 25). In the online version for steps 3(2), 9(8) and 12(10): part of first option was gone and combined with the second option....
A new species of Cortinarius sect. Calochroi, C. pseudocisticola from European deciduous forests, is described on the basis of morphological and genetic features. Several collections of the species from the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary and Italy were studied. Illustrations of fresh basidiomes in situ and of the main macro-and micromorphological...
We report the first halogen speciation analysis study by high performance liquid chromatography coupled with inductively coupled plasma tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-ICPMS/MS) in the fruiting bodies of various mushroom species. Non-targeted speciation analysis revealed the occurrence of dichloroacetic acid (DCAA) in the edible mushroom Russula nig...
Cystoderma carcharias is one of the few macrofungal species that can hyperaccumulate Cd. As we have previously documented in C. carcharias collected from a smelter-polluted area, it stores 40% of Cd and nearly 90% of Cu in sporocarps in complex(es) of identical size. In this paper we examined whether metallothionein (MT) peptides that bind Cd and C...
A new species and its new form, Pluteus hubregtseorum and Pluteus hubregtseorum f. horakianus, are described and illustrated based on material from Australia and New Zealand. Pluteus hubregtseorum is characterized by a squamulose to finely granulose pileus, velutinous at centre and translucently striate at the margin, a pruinose stipe, pileipellis...
Psilocybin, psilocin, baeocystin, norbaeocystin, and aeruginascin are tryptamines structurally similar to the neurotransmitter serotonin. Psilocybin and its pharmacologically active metabolite psilocin in particular are known for their psychoactive effects.
These substances typically occur in most species of the genus Psilocybe (Fungi, Strophariace...
Russula albonigra is considered a well-known species, morphologically delimited by the context of the basidiomata that is blackening without intermediate reddening, and the menthol-cooling taste of the lamellae. It is supposed to have a broad ecological amplitude and a large distribution area. A thorough molecular analysis based on four nuclear mar...
The As concentrations, along with 34 other elements, and the As speciation were investigated in wild-grown samples of the parasitic mushroom Tolypocladium ophioglossoides with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) and high performance liquid chromatography coupled to ICPMS. The As concentrations were 0.070–3.44 mg kg⁻¹ dry mass. More...
A ¹¹⁶Cd–¹⁰⁶Cd double‐spike method in combination with thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) was applied to obtain cadmium (Cd) mass fractions and stable isotope compositions in seven biogenic certified reference materials (pine needles, tomato leaves, spinach leaves, lichen, mussel tissue, oyster tissue, and pig kidney). This sample set was s...
The Violet Crown Cup, Sarcosphaera coronaria, is a rather inconspicuous mushroom, but with an interesting and unresolved mystery. In earlier days, the mushroom was considered edible, but several poisonings were reported in the early 20th century. The reason for the seemingly sporadic toxicity of S. coronaria is still unknown. One possible explanati...
This paper deals with recent finds of Cortinarius pseudoarcuatorum in the Czech Republic. A detailed macro- and microscopic description including photos based on the
authors’ own finds from East Bohemia are presented. Characters distinguishing it from
similar taxa are discussed. The authors propose including this fungus into the next
edition of the...
The rare Black Falsebolete (Boletopsis leucomelaena) is a very rare ectomycorrhizal fungus in the Czech Republic which grows preferably in association with spruce trees on calcareous bedrock. It is categorised in the national red list of fungi as a critically endangered species. The author describes its occurrence in a spruce forest on dolomitic ma...
Pluteus keselakii, a new species in the section Celluloderma, is described and illustrated based on collections from Slovakia and France. Pluteus keselakii is characterised by a brown pileipellis largely composed of sphaeropedunculate to broadly clavate elements, a whitish stipe covered entirely by distinct brown floccules consisting of caulocystid...
Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi establish symbiotic associations with many plant species, transferring significant amounts of soil nutrients such as phosphorus to plants and receiving photosynthetically fixed carbon in return. Functioning of AM symbiosis is thus based on interaction between two living partners. The importance of dead AM fungal bi...
Arsenic (As) is a toxic metalloid with no known biogenic function. To prevent its toxicity, organisms employ a variety of metabolic processes to transform arsenate (As V), that they obtain from the environment, into less toxic compounds. These compounds are then stored within the cell in specialized compartments or exported out of the cell. In this...
Deconica cokeriana is proposed as a new combination based on morphological and molecular data. This species is fully described, discussed, and illustrated. Until now, D. cokeriana is only known from the eastern USA, specifically from Connecticut, Georgia, Ohio, and Tennessee.
Amanita strobiliformis (European Pine Cone Lepidella) is an ectomycorrhizal fungus of the Amanitaceae family known to hyperaccumulate Ag in the sporocarps. Two populations (ecotypes) of A. strobiliformis collected from two urban forest plantations in Prague, Czech Republic, were investigated. The concentrations of Ag, Cu, Cd, and Zn were determined...
The taxonomy and phylogeny of the hydropoid clade (genera Clitocybula s.l., Megacollybia, Leucoinocybe gen. nov., Hydropus, Trogia, Gerronema, Porotheleum and Lignomphalia gen. nov.)in Europe is studied using morphological and molecular approaches; the first three genera in detail including all known European species. Only two European species rema...
It has been firmly established that macrofungi can accumulate large amounts of heavy metals in their sporocarps. However, the mechanisms of the accumulation and storage are being uncovered only recently. We have previously documented that Russula bresadolae can accumulate over 1 g Zn kg ⁻¹ dry weight and that sequestration of a substantial proporti...
The first record of Pluteus rugosidiscus from Europe (Slovakia) is published. The pileipellis structure in this species indicates its placement in section Celluloderma subsection Eucellulodermini. According to a phylogenetic analysis (ITS rDNA), Pluteus rugosidiscus forms a sister Glade to the complex of P. chrysophlebius and represents a distinct...
Collections of Cystoderma carcharias sporocarps were sampled from clean and smelter-polluted sites and analyzed for Ag, As, Cd, Cu, Pb, Se, and Zn contents. Concentrations of all elements were significantly higher in samples from the smelter-polluted area. Except for As and Pb, all elements were effectively accumulated in the sporocarps at both cle...
Hebeloma mesophaeum is an ectomycorrhizal fungus frequently associated with metal disturbed environments. In this work, we examined Ag, Cd, and Zn tolerance of H. mesophaeum isolates from heavy metal-polluted (isolate Prib) and clean (isolate Rez) sites. Both mycelia showed essentially the same level of Ag and Zn tolerance, but Prib was more Cd tol...
Biochar has been heralded as a multipurpose soil amendment to sustainably increase soil fertility and crop yields, affect soil hydraulic properties, reduce nutrient losses, and sequester carbon. Some of the most spectacular results of biochar (and organic nutrient) inputs are the terra preta soils in the Amazon, dark anthropogenic soils with extrem...
Original (raw) experimental data and datalogger records of the glasshouse condition.
Cyanoboletus pulverulentus is an edible bolete reported from both Europe and the USA; the American collections possibly represent a distinct species. • Arsenic concentrations found in 39 collections vary across a large range of 2.4-1300 mg/kg (dry mass). • Median concentration was 160 mg/kg (dry mass). • Dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) was the major ars...
Nomenclatural type definitions are one of the most important concepts in biological nomenclature. Being physical objects that can be re-studied by other researchers, types permanently link taxonomy (an artificial agreement to classify biological diversity) with nomenclature (an artificial agreement to name biological diversity).
Two proposals to am...
The arsenic speciation was determined in macrofungi of the Ramaria genus with HPLC coupled to inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Besides arsenic species that are already known for macrofungi, like arsenobetaine or arsenocholine, two compounds that were only known from marine samples so far (trimethylarsoniopropanate and dimethylarsinoyla...
Arsenic and its species were investigated for the first time in nine collections of Elaphomyces spp. (“deer truffles”) from the Czech Republic with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) and high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to ICPMS. The total arsenic concentrations ranged from 12 to 42 mg kg⁻¹ dry mass in samples of E....
The present study introduces seven new species, one new combination, one new variety and several interesting taxonomical notes and/or geographical records. Most of the new taxa are Ascomycetes, but the study also includes a new variety of a Basidiomycete. Novel species include Gyromitra khanspurensis (Discinaceae, Pezizales, Pezizomycetes) from Pak...
The edible ink stain bolete (Cyanoboletus pulverulentus) was found to hyperaccumulate arsenic. We analyzed 39 individual collections determined as C. pulverulentus, mostly from the Czech Republic. According to our results, concentrations of arsenic in C. pulverulentus fruit-bodies may reach 1,300 mg kg–1 dry weight. In most collections, data for to...
Cortinarius coalescens Kärcher & Seibt is a rare European species of the subgenus Phlegmacium, section
Phlegmacioides, neglected in recent molecular studies. New primers (CortF and CortR) designed for species in the section Phlegmacioides allowed to obtain ITS rDNA sequence data from the holotype collection of C. coalescens; according to the result...
Janda V., Kříž M., Konvalinková T., Borovička J. (2017): Macroscopic variability of Rubroboletus legaliae with special regard to Boletus spinarii. – Czech Mycol. 69(1): 31–50. The paper deals with the macroscopic variability of Rubroboletus legaliae. A detailed macro-scopic description of this species is presented, based on collections from the reg...
Ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi contribute to the survival of host trees on metal-rich soils by reducing the transfer of toxic metals into roots. However, little is known about the ability of ECM fungi to accumulate elements in ectomycorrhizae (ECMs). Here we report Ag, As, Cd, Cl, Cu, Sb, V, and Zn contents in wild-grown Norway spruce ECMs collected i...
Macrofungi can accumulate in their sporocarps remarkably high concentrations of Cu and Ag. We have previously demonstrated that the non-essential Ag is in the ectomycorrhizal, Ag-hyperaccumulating Amanita strobiliformis sequestered by 3.4-kDa metallothioneins (MTs) produced as AsMT1a, 1b and 1c isoforms. Here, we describe two populations of wild-gr...
The article describes a Cortinarius species from the subgenus Phlegmacium, section Fulvi. A group of about 20
mature fruit-bodies was seen growing under oaks and hornbeams in the Údolí Kunratického potoka Natural Monument in Prague in October 2007. The author of this article did not succeed in identifying the fungus at
that time. Thee absence of a...
A new species, Pluteus floccipes, is described and illustrated based on material from the Czech Republic. It is characterised by a dark brown pileus with an opaque surface, a pileipellis in the form of a euhymeniderm, presence of cheilocystidia with brown pigment, and a whitish stipe with brown floccules. The pileipellis structure indicates its pla...
Samples of saprotrophic (24 species) and ectomycorrhizal (26 species) macrofungi were collected from a U-polluted Norway spruce plantation and analyzed for the metals content. Concentrations of metals (Ag, Pb, Th and U) were also analyzed in ectomycorrhizal tips, non-mycorrhizal spruce fine roots and underlying soil. The concentration of U in macro...
This work presents data for the radiogenic Pb isotopic ratios (206Pb/207Pb and 208Pb/206Pb) in nine biogenic certified reference materials (NIST SRM 1515, 1566b, 1570a, 1573a, 1575a; BCR 100, BCR 101, BCR 670 and IAEA 359), which are suitable for analytical quality control in environmental research. The results were obtained using three different t...
Taxo-nomenclaturally, transatlantic disjunctions among fleshy fungi take two forms: 1) the same name is used on both continents, but the phylotaxonomic congruity of the organisms is questionable; and 2) different names are used, but whether they refer to the same or different organisms is questionable. This paper takes up an example of the latter c...
A new species, Cortinarius prodigiosus, is reported from the Czech Republic and Hungary. This medium-sized Phlegmacium is distinguished by a yellow pileus and lower part of stipe, by greyish-violet lamellae, and by strikingly bicolorous flesh: yellow in most parts of stipe and whitish in pileus. On the basis of its morphological and molecular chara...
A new species, Pluteus septocystidiatus, from the Republic of Korea and USA is described, based on morphological and molecular evidence. This new species is remarkable on account of its thick-walled multiseptate pleurocystidia. Its phylogenetic placement inferred from the ITS rDNA nucleotide sequence suggests a close relationship to P. albostipitat...
Five Psilocybe species with unresolved systematic position (P. atrobrunnea, P. laetissima, P. medul- losa, P. pelliculosa, and P. silvatica) were investigated using four molecular markers (EF1-α, ITS, LSU, and IGS). Phylogenetic analysis
revealed that with the exception of P. laetissima, which is now rightfully classified in the genus Leratiomyces,...
Interactions of macrofungi with U, Th, Pb and Ag were investigated in the former ore mining district of Příbram, Czech Republic. Samples of saprotrophic (34 samples, 24 species) and ectomycorrhizal (38 samples, 26 species) macrofungi were collected from a U-polluted Norway spruce plantation and tailings and analyzed for metal content. In contrast t...
Macrofungal species richness generally increases with forest continuity as does the richness of so-called ancient forest plant species (AFS). Based on this assumption, we examined the ability of AFS to indicate macrofungal diversity in six study areas covering a range of elevations and environments in the Czech Republic. In total, we used data from...
Sequestration of intracellular heavy metals in eukaryotes involves compartmentalization and binding with cytosolic, cysteine-rich metallothionein (MT) peptides. We examined the roles of these processes in handling of zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd) and silver (Ag) in sporocarps and a metal-exposed extraradical mycelium of Hebeloma mesophaeum, the Zn-accumu...
Four saprotrophic species of macrofungi (Leucoagaricus leucothites, Agaricus bernardii, A. campestris and A. xanthodermus) were collected from 4 sites in the Czech Republic and analyzed for Pb content and Pb isotopic composition. Lead concentrations were relatively high in L. leucothites (up to 130 mg kg-1) collected in site heavily polluted by a l...
The capability of Fluorescent Random Amplified Microsatellites (F-RAMS) to profile hallucinogenic mushrooms to species and sub-species level was assessed. Fifteen samples of Amanita rubescens and 22 samples of other hallucinogenic and non-hallucinogenic mushrooms of the genera Amanita and Psilocybe were profiled using two fluorescently-labeled, 5'd...
Tuber aestivum is the most common European truffle with significant commercial exploitation. Its production originates from natural habitats and from artificially inoculated host tree plantations. Formation of Tuber ectomycorrhizae in host seedling roots is often inefficient. One possible reason is the lack of indigenous associative microbes. Here...
Psilocybe allenii is a new bluing wood-rotting species from the Pacific Coast, USA. Both morphological and molecular features (ITS rDNA phylogeny) indicate its close relationship to Psilocybe cyanescens Wakef. Despite the shape and size of spores and cystidia of this new species falling within the variability of P. cyanescens, P. allenii can be dis...
This article reviews and updates data on macro and trace elements and radionuclides in edible wild-grown and cultivated mushrooms. A huge biodiversity of mushrooms and spread of certain species over different continents makes the study on their multi-element constituents highly challenging. A few edible mushrooms are widely cultivated and efforts a...
Interaction of Ag with communities of soil saprotrophic organisms was studied in two different soils using a metagenomic approach. Three levels of Ag were applied to the soil samples: 0, 0.008 and 0.505 μg Ag/g soil. Silver was applied in mineral form as well as naturally bound in dry fruit-body biomass of the Ag-hyperaccumulating ectomycorrhizal f...
Questions
Question (1)
I plan to perform Wenzels sequential arsenic soil extraction procedure but I am confused about the extractant in the 4th step. In the 3rd step, I prepared the extractant by neutralization of oxalic acid dihydrate by ammonium hydroxide (50.4 g of oxalic acid dihydrate + 1.8 l water + circa 38 ml of NH4OH to adjust the pH solution to 3.25, then refilled to 2 l volume by water).
In the 4th step, however, ammonium oxalate and ascorbic acid are used together and I failed to find how to prepare this solution - there is no even indication of the ratio. Does anyone know what is ment by the extractant?
