Unearthing Limestone Fungal Diversity: Description of Seven Novel Species from Portugal

Stone–built heritage is found worldwide, and despite stony surfaces being considered a stressful environment with challenging conditions to overcome, research has demonstrated that it can support diverse fungal communities, fostering a unique array of peculiar yet crucial species. These species exhibit a dual nature, being both foe and friend. While these fungi play a considerable role in the deterioration of cultural heritage, their mechanisms of adaptation to unfavourable environments hold great promise for biotechnology. Despite their importance, there is limited information available about these stone dwellers in Portugal. During an experimental survey aimed at isolating fungal species thriving in a deteriorated limestone funerary art piece at the Lemos Pantheon, a national monument located in Águeda, Portugal, several fungal specimens were isolated that could not be identified as any currently known species. Through morphological characteristics and multilocus phylogenetic analyses, seven new species (<i>Aspergillus albicolor sp. nov.</i>, <i>Banksiophoma dissensa sp. nov.</i>, <i>Knufia lusitanica sp. nov.</i>, <i>Microascus lausatensis sp. nov.</i>, <i>Neodevriesia saximollicula sp. nov.</i>, <i>Paramicrodochium filiforme</i> <i>sp. nov.</i> and <i>Talaromyces benedictus sp. nov.</i>) are here proposed, illustrated, and compared to closely related species. These newly discovered fungal taxa form distinct lineages independent of other previously described species and are classified into seven families across six orders within the phylum <i>Ascomycota</i>. This paper also provides additional evidence that the stone harbours a diverse range of new species, deserving additional focus in the future.石质文物遍布全球，尽管石材表面被视为亟待克服的严苛胁迫环境，但已有研究表明其可支撑多样的真菌群落，孕育出一批独特奇特却至关重要的物种。这些真菌兼具双重属性，既是危害文物的“敌”，亦是兼具科研价值的“友”。尽管此类真菌在文化遗产劣化过程中扮演着重要角色，但其对不良环境的适应机制却为生物技术领域带来了巨大应用前景。尽管这些石栖真菌意义重大，但目前关于葡萄牙境内此类物种的相关研究资料仍十分匮乏。本研究针对位于葡萄牙阿格达的国家纪念建筑莱莫斯万神殿内一处劣化的石灰岩质丧葬艺术品开展分离实验调查，从中分离得到数株无法被鉴定为现有已知物种的真菌标本。本研究通过形态特征分析与多位点系统发育分析，正式发表7个真菌新种，分别为<i>Aspergillus albicolor sp. nov.</i>、<i>Banksiophoma dissensa sp. nov.</i>、<i>Knufia lusitanica sp. nov.</i>、<i>Microascus lausatensis sp. nov.</i>、<i>Neodevriesia saximollicula sp. nov.</i>、<i>Paramicrodochium filiforme sp. nov.</i>与<i>Talaromyces benedictus sp. nov.</i>，并对其进行形态绘图与近缘物种比对。这些新发现的真菌类群形成了独立于所有已发表物种的独特演化支，隶属于子囊菌门（Ascomycota）下6个目、7个科。本研究同时提供了额外证据，证明石材生境中蕴藏着多样的全新真菌类群，未来值得开展更多相关研究。