A Comprehensive Account of the Rust Genus <i>Skierka</i> (<i>Skierkaceae</i>)

The rust genus <i>Skierka</i> belonging to the phylum <i>Basidiomycota</i> was described in 1900 by Raciborski with <i>Skierka canarii</i> as the type species. The published literature on this rust genus reveals its ambiguity in taxonomic placement. It was challen...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Acharya Balkrishna, Ajay Kumar Gautam, Shubhi Avasthi, Mekala Niranjan, Rajnish Kumar Verma, Vedpriya Arya, Ashwani Kumar, Samantha C. Karunarathna, Nakarin Suwannarach
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-11-01
Series:Journal of Fungi
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/8/12/1243
Description
Summary:The rust genus <i>Skierka</i> belonging to the phylum <i>Basidiomycota</i> was described in 1900 by Raciborski with <i>Skierka canarii</i> as the type species. The published literature on this rust genus reveals its ambiguity in taxonomic placement. It was challenging to taxonomically delineate and precisely identify each species within this genus due to the species sharing some common characteristics. The latest studies based on morphology taxonomy and molecular characteristics, however, have solved this puzzle now and placed this genus in its new family <i>Skierkaceae</i>. To understand all about the genus <i>Skierka,</i> this compilation was carried out to unveil the general characteristics, history, diversity, distribution, ecology, morphology and molecular taxonomy of different species of <i>Skierka</i>. After exploring 14 species of <i>Skierka</i>, it was observed that this genus is distributed in seven plant families in 19 countries all over the world. The genus appears to be well-represented in Asian and South American counties. This rust has not been reported from any European countries to date. The morpho-taxonomy of all species is well studied, but molecular analyses are still required. Only two species of the genus namely <i>S. robusta</i> and <i>S. diploglottidis</i> were identified based molecular analyses. Therefore, further studies should be focused on epitypifying the taxa that are too old and updating their taxonomy based on molecular, biochemical, and physiological aspects along with morphological characteristics. Multiple analytical methods should be considered when dealing with multi-locus datasets. This will increase our understanding of the diversity, distribution, and identification of these rust fungi.
ISSN:2309-608X