Genetic testing on 600 completely different fungal species has shown that they all actually descended from the same common ancestor. The discovery thwarted the plans of researchers, who until now had to divide them into six branches of the fungal family tree because of their different characteristics.
Biologist Toby Spribille says none of them have “a particularly common trait” that would suggest they belong to the same group at first glance, “but when you look at the genome, it turns out.” The University of Alberta spearheading this research project. These “weirds” are symbiotes and have a very small DNA, they share genetic material.
For researchers, this relationship is similar to that of the platypus and echidna, two mammals that lay eggs despite being able to breastfeed. The existence of these two physically dissimilar animals has come into question, and although these fungi don’t go to such extremes, it seems to be a similar situation because in practice they “look completely different”.
This study published in the journal Current Biologyused Genetic sequencing techniques to see what these mushrooms really look like inside. With the information they obtained, they were able to introduce these rare ‘orphan’ mushrooms into a so-called new family. Lichinomycetes. In this new phylogenetic group are all these fungi that specialized at one point—about 300 million years ago—and surpassed their common ancestor.
Research team consisting of scientists from seven different countries selected 30 different fungi to sequence their genomes. All mushroom species except one had a common history.. “We knew they existed and we classified them, so we never suspected they were related,” explains David Díaz-Escandón. IT.
Many types of mushrooms
There are many different fungi that make up this new group. Examples of these are the tongues of the earth, the mysterious tongue-shaped mushrooms protruding vertically from the ground; intestinal microbes of insects and a fungus found in tree sap in northern Alberta. Some unusual lichens that survived in extreme habitats also managed to start a new family.Like the Atacama desert in South America.
The team also concluded with information about their genome, which is small compared to other fungi: This group of species has something in common besides their DNA, and that is their dependence on other organisms for survival.. “They’ve all lost a large part of their ability to integrate some carbohydrates,” says Spribille, who insists this information is taken from their small genome. Seeing them in their natural habitat confirmed that they were all in “symbiosis” with other species.
This new research forms the basis for a larger future study of the evolution of fungi, particularly how fungi inherit important biotechnological properties such as enzymes that break down plant matter.
Also, the discovery of this new group could be a new source of information about fungal extinctions. “It is likely that the survivors of the fungal biodiversity we see today are just the tip of the iceberg,” emphasizes the researcher.
Reference work: https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(22)01770-5
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