RFLP analysis as a tool for identification of lignicolous basidiomycetes: European polypores

Restriction fragment length polymorphisms were generated for 52 species of lignicolous European polypores belonging to 31 different genera. An enzymat ically amplified portion of the nuclear-encoded ribosomal DNA was found to be about 1800-1900 bp long for most taxa. After digestion with Hpa II, 44 d istinct phenotypes were detected for the species under study; application o f the additional restriction endonucleases, Hin6 I and Hinf I, resulted in 48 species-specific and two genera-specific phenotypes. The procedure descr ibed should allow for a reliable identification of unknown mycelia of ligni colous fungi.