DIPODASCUS STARMERI SP-NOV, A NEW SPECIES OF YEAST OCCURRING IN CACTUS NECROSES

In a previous publication describing the geographic distribution of ye asts associated with cactus necroses (W. T. Starmer, M.-A. Lachance, H . J. Phaff, and W. B. Heed, Evol. Biol. 24:253-296, 1990), 127 isolate s were identified as strains of Candida ingens van der Walt et van Ker ken on the basis of morphology and certain phenotypic characteristics. Here we show by using DNA hybridization and additional phenotypic pro perties that these strains were misidentified and that they represent a minimum of three separate species that can be differentiated from C. ingens and from each other by utilization of 2-propanol or acetone, s ensitivity to digitonin, utilization of L-lysine as a sole nitrogen so urce, vitamin dependence, NaCl tolerance, lipolytic activity, and habi tat, One of the new species is haploid and heterothallic, and its tele omorph represents the genus Dipodascus. We describe Dipodascus starmer i sp, nov. The phylogenetic relationship of D. starmeri with other mem bers of the genus Dipodascus and its anamorph, the genus Geotrichum, w as estimated from ribosomal DNA nucleotide sequence divergence, The ty pe strain, a heterothallic haploid isolate, is UCD-FST 72-316 (= CBS 7 80.96 = ATCC 200546 = NRRL Y-17816), The complementary mating type is UCD-FST 81-513.3 (= CBS 781.96 = ATCC 200547 = NRRL Y-17817).