Ursula Peintner

University of Innsbruck | UIBK · Institute of Microbiology

RIASSUNTO Dallo studio approfondito del protologo di Agaricus erubescens, specie creata da Fries nel 1821, emerge inequivocabilmente che il lectotypus obbligatorio è rap-presentato da una specie di Rhodocollybia. Le due tavole di riferimento indicate dal sommo Autore svedese, infatti, raffigurano entrambe R. maculata. Il nome A. erubescens, pertant...

Fungal pigments are characterized by a diverse set of chemical backbones, some of which present photosensitizer-like structures. From the genus Cortinarius, for example, several biologically active photosensitizers have been identified leading to the hypothesis that photoactivity might be a more general phenomenon in the kingdom Fungi. This paper a...

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) might mediate microbial interactions, especially in spatially structured environments, such as soil. However, the variety and specificity of VOC production are poorly understood. Here, we studied 25 Mortierellaceae strains belonging to the genera Linnemannia and Entomortierella in both pure and co-culture with Pseu...

The photoantimicrobial potential of four mushroom species (i.e., Cortinarius cinnabarinus, C. sanguineus, C. rubrophyllus, and C. holoxanthus) was explored based on a light modified EUCAST protocol. The extracts were tested against Candida albicans, Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus under blue (λ = 428 nm and λ = 478 nm, H = 30 J cm-2) an...

Fungi are incredibly diverse, but they are unexplored, especially in the subalpine and alpine zone. Mortierellaceae are certainly one of the most abundant, species-rich, and widely distributed cultivable soil fungal families in terrestrial habitats, including subalpine and alpine zones. The phylogeny of Mortierellaceae was recently resolved based o...

The photobiological activity of ten colorful species belonging to subgenus Dermocybe of the basidiomycete genus Cortinarius was investigated. Extracts of all species produced singlet oxygen and are thus photoactive. Pigment analysis was performed and showed similarities of the anthraquinone pigments across the species in dependency to their respect...

Background and Aims Pinus cembra represent a typical and important tree species growing in European subalpine and alpine habitats. The ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungal communities associated to this tree under natural conditions are largely unknown. Methods In this study, we investigated the ECM fungal abundance and composition at four high-altitude s...

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...

DOI: 10.1002/jssc.202100869 The cover picture shows a visual representation of the vivid colors found in basidiomycetes. Starting from fruiting bodies of Cortinarius sanguineus, a separation strategy for anthraquinones was developed based on centrifugal partition chromatography (scheme in the middle). The methanolic crude extract (top right) was fr...

The colorful agaricoid fruiting bodies of dermocyboid Cortinarii owe their magnificent hue to a mixture of anthraquinone (AQ) pigments. Recently, it was discovered that some of these fungal anthraquinones have an impressive photopharmacological effect. The question, therefore, arises as to whether these pigments are also of ecological or functional...

The boletoid genera Butyriboletus and Exsudoporus have recently been suggested by some researchers to constitute a single genus, and Exsudoporus was merged into Butyriboletus as a later synonym. However, no convincing arguments have yet provided significant evidence for this congeneric placement. In this study, we analyze material from Exsudoporus...

Pigments of fungi are a fertile ground of inspiration: they spread across various chemical backbones, absorption ranges, and bioactivities. However, basidiomycetes with strikingly colored fruiting bodies have never been explored as agents for photodynamic therapy (PDT), even though known photoactive compound classes (e.g., anthraquinones or alkaloi...

Mushrooms such as the dermocyboid Cortinarius rubrophyllus are characterized by strikingly colorful fruiting bodies. The molecular dyes responsible for such colors recently experienced a comeback as photoactive compounds with remarkable photophysical and photobiological properties. One of them—7,7′-biphyscion—is a dimeric anthraquinone that showed...

As recently shown, some fungal pigments exhibit significant photoactivity turning them into promising agents for the photodynamic treatment of microbial infections or malignant diseases. In the present study, a separation strategy for fungal anthraquinones was developed based on centrifugal partition chromatography. A suitable method was explored e...

This article is the 13th contribution in the Fungal Diversity Notes series, wherein 125 taxa from four phyla, ten classes, 31 orders, 69 families, 92 genera and three genera incertae sedis are treated, demonstrating worldwide and geographic distribution. Fungal taxa described and illustrated in the present study include three new genera, 69 new spe...

Fungi have developed a wide array of defense strategies to overcome mechanical injuries and pathogen infections. Recently, photoactivity has been discovered by showing that pigments isolated from Cortinarius uliginosus produce singlet oxygen under irradiation. To test if this phenomenon is limited to dermocyboid Cortinarii, six colourful Cortinariu...

Due to their small size, microorganisms directly experience only a tiny portion of the environmental heterogeneity manifested in the soil. The microscale variations in soil properties constrain the distribution of fungi and bacteria, and the extent to which they can interact with each other, thereby directly influencing their behavior and ecologica...

Antimicrobial resistance is one of the biggest health and subsequent economic threat humanity faces. Next to massive global awareness campaigns, governments and NGOs alike stress the need for new innovative strategies to treat microbial infections. One of such innovative strategies is the photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy (PACT) in which the...

Mortierellaceae species are among the most frequent and globally distributed soil fungi. However, the factors shaping their diversity and distribution remain obscure. Several species have been reported to be associated to bacteria, but the kind and frequency of such associations were not addressed up to now. We hypothesized that such associations c...

The focus of this paper is the North American species of Cortinarius in subg. Leprocybe. Eighteen species, including twelve new ones, and two tentative (aff.) species, are delimited based on morphological and molecular data (DNA ITS-LSU sequences). Existing type specimens of species in subg. Leprocybe were also studied, and neo- or epitypes designa...

This paper is a contribution to the current knowledge of taxonomy, ecology and distribution of South American Cortinarius (Pers.) Gray. Cortinarius is among the most widely distributed and species-rich basidiomycete genera occurring with South American Nothofagaceae and species are found in many distinct habitats, including shrublands and forests....

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of an alkaline additive on the storage of wood chips from Norway spruce forest residues. Piles of untreated and calcium hydroxide treated wood chips (250 m3) were set up and investigated for four months. It was demonstrated that adding Ca(OH) 2 to moist wood chips decreased the dry matter lo...

In ecology, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) have a high bioactive and signaling potential. VOCs are not only metabolic products, but are also relevant in microbial cross talk and plant interaction. Here, we report the first large-scale VOC study of 13 different species of Mortierella sensu lato (s.l.) isolated from a range of different alpine env...

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Australia, Austroboletus asper on soil, Cylindromonium alloxyli on leaves of Alloxylon pinnatum, Davidhawksworthia quintiniae on leaves of Quintinia sieberi, Exophiala prostantherae on leaves of Prostanthera sp., Lactifluus lactiglaucus on soil, Linterom...

Aboveground species richness patterns of vascular plants, aphyllophoroid macrofungi, bryophytes and lichens were compared along an altitudinal gradient (80-310 m a.s.l.) on the Slantsevaya mountain at the eastern macroslope of the Polar Urals (Russia). Five altitudinal levels were included in the study: (1) Northern boreal forest with larch-spruce...

The species richness and ecological-morphological structure of the aboveground vegetation and mycobiota are actively changing as a result of rapid climatic changes in high latitudes. In the Russian Arctic, monitoring studies of the relationship between plant and fungal components have been carried out for half a century. The paper discusses the iss...

Alpine habitats are one of the most vulnerable ecosystems to environmental change, however, little is known about the drivers of plant‐fungal interactions in these ecosystems and their resilience to climate change. We investigate the influence of the main drivers of ectomycorrhizal (EM) fungal communities along elevation and environmental gradient...

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Deadwood decomposition is relevant in nature and wood inhabiting fungi (WIF) are its main decomposers. However, climate influence on WIF community and their interactions with bacteria are poorly understood. Therefore, we set up an in-field mesocosm experiment in the Italian Alps and monitored the effect of slope exposure (north- vs. south-facing sl...

We studied the South American species of Cortinarius section Thaumasti based on morphological and molecular data. Members of this group can easily be identified in the field because the basidiomata are small and Phlegmacium-like with a bulbous stipe and the universal veil in most species forms a distinct volva at the base of the stipe. The phylogen...

The long-term influence of climate change on spatio-temporal dynamics of the Polar mycobiota was analyzed on the eastern macro slope of the Polar Urals (Sob River valley and Mountain Slantsevaya) over a period of 60 years. The anthropogenic impact is minimal in the study area. Effects of environmental warming were addressed as changes in treeline a...

Abstract Species that cannot be easily distinguished based on morphology, but which form distinct phylogenetic lineages based on molecular markers, are often referred to as cryptic species. They have been proposed in a number of fungal genera, including the basidiomycete genus Fomes. The main aim of this work was to test new methods for species del...

Environmental drivers of alpine ectomycorrhizal fungal communities.

Aim Polar and alpine ecosystems appear to be particularly sensitive to increasing temperatures and the altered precipitation patterns linked to climate change. However, little is currently known about how these environmental drivers may affect edaphic organisms within these ecosystems. In this study, we examined communities of plant root‐associated...

We used amplicon sequencing and isolation of fungi from in‐growth mesh bags to identify active fungi in three earliest stages of soil development (SSD) at a glacier forefield (0‐3, 9‐14, 18‐25 years after retreat of glacial ice). Soil organic matter and nutrient concentrations were extremely low, but the fungal diversity was high (220 OTUs / 138 cu...

In this study, we document and describe the new Cortinarius section Austroamericani. Our results reveal high species diversity within this clade, with a total of 12 recognized species. Of these, only C. rufus was previously documented. Seven species are described as new based on basidiomata collections. The four remaining species are only known fro...

Alpine ectomycorrhizal fungi, Environmental Drivers, European Alps

Cortinarius magellanicus Speg. is an edible, ectomycorrhizal fungus, widely distributed in Argentina, Chile and New Zealand. However, earlier studies already indicated that the epithet ‘magellanicus’ might have been applied in a wide sense, thus circumscribing several species. A neotype was designated by Moser and Horak (1975) due Spegazzini's type...

The constant increase of viral resistance and the limited number of effective antiviral agents emphasizes that the current portfolio of anti-influenza drugs needs extension[1]. To identify new anti-influenza agents from nature, locally grown European polypores belonging to the polyphyletic group of Agaricomycetes (Basidiomycota) were collected and...

In an in vitro screening for anti-influenza agents from European polypores, the fruit body extract of Gloeophyllum odoratum dose-dependently inhibited the cytopathic effect of the H3N2 influenza virus A/Hong Kong/68 (HK/68) in Madin Darby canine kidney cells with a 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 15 µg/mL, a noncytotoxic concentration. After...

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...

Due to the increase of viral resistance and a constant threat of pandemics, the current portfolio of anti-influenza drugs needs extension. In this context, locally grown European polypores belonging to the class of Agaricomycetes were investigated as source for anti-influenza agents from nature. Fruit bodies of several strains from ten species incl...

Seven species of Cortinarius, subgenus Telamonia, section Colymbadini and /Flavobasilis, are reported from conifer forests in the mountains of western North America. They typically produce basidiomes in the spring and summer. Only one species, C. colymbadinus, is widespread, occurring in Europe and western North America, but to date not reported fr...

Several collections of Amanita species from section Vaginatae have been reported to be strictly associated with Helianthe-mum plants growing in grasslands, a still largely under-explored ectomycorrhizal habitat. The main aim of this study was to investigate the taxonomic status and phylogenetic position of strictly Helianthemum-associated Amanita s...

Cystoderma carpaticum was collected and originally described from the Carpathians in Poland. Later, it was recombined in the genera Lepiota and Echinoderma. Two recent collections from Croatia allowed for reliable phylogenetic and morphological comparative analyses of this rare fungus, including the holotype specimen. Our results confirmed that thi...

Fungal pure cultures identified with both classical morphological methods and through barcoding sequences are a basic requirement for reliable reference sequences in public databases. Improved techniques for an accelerated DNA barcode reference library construction will result in considerably improved sequence databases covering a wider taxonomic r...

Myrmecridium hiemale sp. nov. was isolated from snow-covered alpine bare soil and is described as the first eurypsychrophilic species of this genus of filamentous fungi. Colony growth temperature experiments were carried out in the range of 4-37 °C. Morphological characteristics and colony appearance are in accordance to characteristics typical for...

Different distance-based threshold selection approaches were used to assess and compare use of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region to distinguish among 901 Cortinarius species represented by >3000 collections. Sources of error associated with genetic markers and selection approaches were explored and evaluated using MOTUs from genus and li...

Ectomycorrhizae (EM) are important for the survival of seedlings and trees, but how they will react to global warming or changes in soil fertility is still in question. We tested the effect of soil temperature manipulation and nitrogen fertilization on EM communities in a high-altitude Pinus cembra afforestation. The trees had been inoculated in th...

Polypores have been applied in traditional Chinese medicine up to the present day, and are becoming more and more popular worldwide. They show a wide range of bioactivities including anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, antiviral and immuno-enhancing effects. Their secondary metabolites have been the focus of many studies, but the importance of fungal s...

Apple replant disease (ARD) is a frequently occurring plant disease, which causes retarded growth and mortality of young apple trees in replanted orchards. The aetiology is not well understood, but soil-borne micro-organisms are often discussed as primary causal agents of the replant problem. A greenhouse study was conducted in Laimburg, Italy, wit...

Cortinarius microglobisporus spec. nov., a taxon with small, roundish basidiospores, is here described from a submediterranean habitat in Italy (Apeninnes). A full description, colour pictures of basidiomata, and line drawings of microscopic features are provided. Phylogenetic relationships and species delimitations were investigated using rDNA ITS...

The nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region is the formal fungal barcode and in most cases the marker of choice for exploration of fungal diversity in environmental samples. Two problems are particularly acute in the pursuit of satisfactory taxonomic assignment of newly generated ITS sequences: (i) the lack of an inclusive, relia...

Hyperthermia is a classical sign of poisoning by ergot (Claviceps purpurea), but this is the first time that a similar syndrome has been reported from Europe. The contamination of foods and feeds with mycotoxins is a significant problem. Mycotoxins are fungal secondary metabolites that have adverse effects on humans and animals. Ergot alkaloids are...

Anaerobic fungi live inside the rumen and hindgut of lots of herbivorous animals, where they synergistically with bacteria and protozoa degrade plant material. These gastro-intestinal symbionts allow its animal host to obtain energy from an otherwise non digestible feed, because vertebrates themselves lack the enzymatic capability to degrade comple...

The genus Alnicola (Hymenogastraceae) contains a majority of host-specific ectomycorrhizal species, associated with various species of alders (Alnus spp.). Three species associated specifically with Alnus alnobetula are described as new and illustrated: Alnicola badiofusca P.-A. Moreau sp. nov., A. pallidifolia P.-A. Moreau & Peintner sp. nov., and...