Morphological characterization and phylogenetic placement of Ramiconidium sinense gen. et sp. nov. (Microascaceae, Microascales)

The fungal diversity in environments closely related to human life and health has been largely overlooked. This study describs <i>Ramiconidium sinense</i> gen. et sp. nov., isolated during a survey of soil fungi from Guizhou Wildlife Park in China. A multi-locus phylogenetic analyses demonstrated that <i>Ramiconidium</i> forms a distinct clade (from all previously recognized genera) in the family Microascaceae. <i>R. sinense</i> differs from other taxa of the family by the absence of a sexual state, the absence of anellidic conidiogenous cells, the absence of conidiomata and the production of conidiophores bearing acropetal chains of 0-1-septate conidia. Comprehensive descriptions and detailed illustrations, as well as its taxonomical position based on the analysis of the nucleotide sequences of phylogenetically informative molecular markers, of this are presented in this study.