Alignments of Ophiocordyceps unilateralis from México

Zombie-ant fungi from western Mexico: six new species in the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis complex (Hypocreales: Ascomycota) and a new host association with Cephalotes antsAbstractThe myrmecophilous hirsutelloid fungi of the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis complex are common in tropical forests around the world. They are known as zombie-ant fungi because they manipulate the behavior of ants, since infected ants are forced to move to specific sites in the forest, with optimal environmental conditions for the development of the fungus fruiting body or sporome and the release of the spores. Once there, the ants grab to the substrate with their mandibles, die, and their body becomes a source of nutrients for the fungus. Most of the species of the O. unilateralis complex have been described from the Neotropics and the East and Southeast Asia. However, it is likely that there are still many unknown species due to the diversity of their hosts and different specific associations. In this work, we describe six new species of the O. unilateralis complex from western Mexico: O. camponoti-striatus, O. cephalotephila, O. deltoroi, O. haraveriensis, O. jaliscana, and O. pseudocamponoti-atricipis, based on morphological characters, phylogenetic analyses of DNA sequences (18S, TEF1, RPB1, and RPB2), and ecological data. We found the following host associations: one fungus – one ant, two fungi – one ant, and one fungus – two ants. Furthermore, we confirmed the host species of the ant genera Camponotus and Colobopsis (Formicinae) based on morphological characters and COI sequences, but we also found two species of Cephalotes (Myrmicinae) susceptible to fungal attack, challenging the paradigm that the O. unilateralis complex is a specific parasite of Camponotini (Formicinae) ants. This study provides insights into the evolution and host range of the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis complex in Mexico.墨西哥西部的僵尸蚁真菌：单线虫草（Ophiocordyceps unilateralis）复合群6个新种（肉座菌目：子囊菌门）及与旋龟蚁属（Cephalotes）蚂蚁的新寄主关联 摘要：隶属于单线虫草复合群的蚁嗜性被毛孢类真菌广泛分布于全球热带森林中。这类真菌被称为僵尸蚁真菌，因其可操控蚂蚁行为：受感染的蚂蚁会被迫移动至森林中特定位点，该位点具备真菌子实体或产孢结构发育与孢子释放所需的最优环境条件。抵达该位点后，蚂蚁会用颚紧抓基质，随后死亡，其躯体则成为真菌获取营养的来源。 目前已报道的单线虫草复合群物种多数分布于新热带区以及东亚、东南亚地区。然而，由于其寄主类群多样且寄主特异性关联形式各异，该复合群仍存在大量未被发现的物种。 本研究基于形态特征、DNA序列（18S核糖体RNA（18S）、翻译延伸因子1α（TEF1）、RNA聚合酶Ⅱ最大亚基（RPB1）及RNA聚合酶Ⅱ第二大亚基（RPB2））的系统发育分析以及生态数据，描述了采自墨西哥西部的6个单线虫草复合群新种：O. camponoti-striatus、O. cephalotephila、O. deltoroi、O. haraveriensis、O. jaliscana与O. pseudocamponoti-atricipis。本研究发现了三种寄主关联模式：一真菌对应一蚂蚁、两真菌对应一蚂蚁，以及一真菌对应两蚂蚁。 此外，本研究通过形态特征与细胞色素氧化酶亚基I（COI）序列，确认了蚁亚科（Formicinae）弓背蚁属（Camponotus）和截头蚁属（Colobopsis）的寄主物种；同时还发现切叶蚁亚科（Myrmicinae）旋龟蚁属（Cephalotes）的两个物种可被该真菌侵染，这一发现挑战了“单线虫草复合群仅为蚁亚科弓背蚁族专属寄生真菌”的传统范式。本研究为解析墨西哥地区单线虫草复合群的演化历程与寄主范围提供了新的认知。