Two new species of Tremella arisaematis (Tremellaceae) and Pseudotremella guizhouensis (Bulleraceae) from China

In the present study, three basidiomycetous yeast strains were isolated from plant materials collected in Guizhou and Henan provinces, China. Phenotypic characteristics, together with phylogenetic analyses based on the D 1 / D 2 domain of the large subunit (LSU) rRNA gene and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, were used to characterize and identify these isolates. As a result, two novel species, namely Tremella arisaematis sp. nov. and Pseudotremella guizhouensis sp. nov., are described herein.

In the phylogeny inferred from the concatenated D 1 / D 2 and ITS sequences, T. arisaematis sp. nov. was closely related to T. saccharicola, whereas P. guizhouensis sp. nov. was resolved as a sister species to P. allantoinivorans. Illustrated descriptions of the two novel species and comparisons with closely related taxa are provided. These results indicate that the species’ diversity of Tremella and Pseudotremella remains underexplored, with additional undescribed taxa likely awaiting discovery.