Ganoderma multistipitatum sp. nov. from Chir pine tree (Pinus roxburghii Sarg.) in Pakistan

Background: Ganoderma species are in state of flux in Pakistan as well as in the world. The diversity of this wood-inhabiting basidiomycete in Pakistan is still poorly known. A few species have been introduced from the country; even the country is rich with many Ganoderma species, which still need identification.Methods: Ganoderma multistipitatum sp. nov. is described from Lahore, Punjab Pakistan by using the morpho-anatomical (via naked eye and compound microscope) characters and molecular data from the ITS regions of DNA. The specimens used in this study were collected from the Botanical Garden of Government College University Lahore. The G. multistipitatum sp. nov. is, to date, only known from Lahore on Chir pine tree.Results: Morphologically, this species is characterized by laccate orange, brown basidiomata, maroon, brown multi stipitate, and anatomically by ellipsoid basidiospores (10.24-11.2 x 5.3-5.4 lm) and trimitic hyphal system. The G. multistipitatum sp. nov. is 21st species from the genus Ganoderma known from Pakistan. This new species is also described with photographs, line drawings and compared with nearby taxa of the phylogenetic tree constructed by software MEGA10. This species resembled with typical G. luci-dum, but the ITS DNA sequences of this species were much far away from G. multistipitatum sp. nov. ones.Conclusion: The phylogeny based on ITS sequences supported this as a new distinct species, which finally compared with closely matrixed G. multipileum and related allies. The aim of this study was to introduce the new species from genus Ganoderma, which is a major contribution in biodiversity of the world.(c) 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Automated summary

A new species of Ganoderma, G. multistipitatum sp. nov., was discovered in Lahore, Pakistan. It is characterized by brown-orange basidiomata and specific basidiospores, and is currently only found on pine trees in Lahore. This new species contributes significantly to the biodiversity of the world.