A survey and outline taxonomy of the <i>Phragmidium mucronatum</i> (<i>Pucciniales</i>) and related species inhabiting roses in the European part of Russia

The article presents the results of a detailed survey of cultivated roses growing in the European territory of Russia for their infestation by fungi of the genus Phragmidium causing rose rust disease. The main study area was the rose garden of the Peter the Great Botanical Garden of BIN RAS (St. Petersburg). A total of five wild species and 43 varieties of roses from seven garden groups were studied. As a result of morphological analysis of affected plant parts, detailed microscopy (using light and scanning electron microscopes) of collected fungal specimens and analysis of DNA data, four species of the genus (Phragmidium mucronatum, P. fusiforme, P. tuberculatum, and P. rosae- pimpinellifoliae) were identified. Interestingly, all identified species appeared to belong to the group of morphologically similar species from the P. mucronatum complex. During the study, the nucleotide sequences of ITS for P. fusiforme, P. mucronatum, and P. rosae- pimpinellifoliae and LSU for P. rosae-pimpinellifoliae, previously missing from databases, were obtained for the first time. Refined morphological descriptions and illustrations of macro- and microstructures are provided for all Phragmidium species studied. To compare the studied species with other representatives of the genus and to determine their phylogenetic position, phylogenetic analysis based on ITS and LSU sequences was performed.