High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen Symbionts
<i>Peltigera</i> lichens can colonize extreme habitats, such as high-elevation ecosystems, but their biodiversity is still largely unknown in these environments, especially in the southern hemi- sphere. We assessed the genetic diversity of mycobionts and cyanobionts of 60 <i>Peltig...
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MDPI AG
2023-03-01
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| Series: | Journal of Fungi |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/9/3/372 |
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| author | Karla Veas-Mattheos Katerin Almendras Matías Pezoa Cecilia Muster Julieta Orlando |
| author_facet | Karla Veas-Mattheos Katerin Almendras Matías Pezoa Cecilia Muster Julieta Orlando |
| author_sort | Karla Veas-Mattheos |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <i>Peltigera</i> lichens can colonize extreme habitats, such as high-elevation ecosystems, but their biodiversity is still largely unknown in these environments, especially in the southern hemi- sphere. We assessed the genetic diversity of mycobionts and cyanobionts of 60 <i>Peltigera</i> lichens collected in three high Andean steppes of southern Chile using LSU, <i>β-tubulin</i>, COR3 and ITS loci for mycobionts, and SSU and <i>rbcLX</i> loci for cyanobionts. We obtained 240 sequences for the different mycobiont markers and 118 for the cyanobiont markers, including the first report of <i>β-tubulin</i> sequences of <i>P. patagonica</i> through modifying a previously designed primer. Phylogenetic analyses, ITS scrutiny and variability of haplotypes were used to compare the sequences with those previously reported. We found seven mycobiont species and eleven cyanobiont haplotypes, including considerable novel symbionts. This was reflected by ~30% of mycobionts and ~20% of cyanobionts haplotypes that yielded less than 99% BLASTn sequence identity, 15 new sequences of the ITS1-HR, and a putative new <i>Peltigera</i> species associated with 3 <i>Nostoc</i> haplotypes not previously reported. Our results suggest that high Andean steppe ecosystems are habitats of unknown or little-explored lichen species and thus valuable environments to enhance our understanding of global <i>Peltigera</i> biodiversity. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:20:30Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ca1a8b1b31644d48b8c3026f32181a6f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2309-608X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T06:20:30Z |
| publishDate | 2023-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Fungi |
| spelling | doaj.art-ca1a8b1b31644d48b8c3026f32181a6f2023-11-17T12:00:38ZengMDPI AGJournal of Fungi2309-608X2023-03-019337210.3390/jof9030372High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen SymbiontsKarla Veas-Mattheos0Katerin Almendras1Matías Pezoa2Cecilia Muster3Julieta Orlando4Laboratory of Microbial Ecology, Department of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 7800003, ChileLaboratory of Microbial Ecology, Department of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 7800003, ChileLaboratory of Microbial Ecology, Department of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 7800003, ChileLaboratory of Microbial Ecology, Department of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 7800003, ChileLaboratory of Microbial Ecology, Department of Ecological Sciences, Faculty of Sciences, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 7800003, Chile<i>Peltigera</i> lichens can colonize extreme habitats, such as high-elevation ecosystems, but their biodiversity is still largely unknown in these environments, especially in the southern hemi- sphere. We assessed the genetic diversity of mycobionts and cyanobionts of 60 <i>Peltigera</i> lichens collected in three high Andean steppes of southern Chile using LSU, <i>β-tubulin</i>, COR3 and ITS loci for mycobionts, and SSU and <i>rbcLX</i> loci for cyanobionts. We obtained 240 sequences for the different mycobiont markers and 118 for the cyanobiont markers, including the first report of <i>β-tubulin</i> sequences of <i>P. patagonica</i> through modifying a previously designed primer. Phylogenetic analyses, ITS scrutiny and variability of haplotypes were used to compare the sequences with those previously reported. We found seven mycobiont species and eleven cyanobiont haplotypes, including considerable novel symbionts. This was reflected by ~30% of mycobionts and ~20% of cyanobionts haplotypes that yielded less than 99% BLASTn sequence identity, 15 new sequences of the ITS1-HR, and a putative new <i>Peltigera</i> species associated with 3 <i>Nostoc</i> haplotypes not previously reported. Our results suggest that high Andean steppe ecosystems are habitats of unknown or little-explored lichen species and thus valuable environments to enhance our understanding of global <i>Peltigera</i> biodiversity.https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/9/3/372Andean steppesChilecyanobiontlichenmycobiont<i>Nostoc</i> |
| spellingShingle | Karla Veas-Mattheos Katerin Almendras Matías Pezoa Cecilia Muster Julieta Orlando High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen Symbionts Journal of Fungi Andean steppes Chile cyanobiont lichen mycobiont <i>Nostoc</i> |
| title | High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen Symbionts |
| title_full | High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen Symbionts |
| title_fullStr | High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen Symbionts |
| title_full_unstemmed | High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen Symbionts |
| title_short | High Andean Steppes of Southern Chile Contain Little-Explored <i>Peltigera</i> Lichen Symbionts |
| title_sort | high andean steppes of southern chile contain little explored i peltigera i lichen symbionts |
| topic | Andean steppes Chile cyanobiont lichen mycobiont <i>Nostoc</i> |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/9/3/372 |
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