Spathaspora arborariae sp nov., a D-xylose-fermenting yeast species isolated from rotting wood in Brazil

Four strains of a new yeast species were isolated from rotting wood from two sites in an Atlantic Rain Forest and a Cerrado ecosystem in Brazil. The analysis of the sequences of the D1/D2 domains of the large-subunit rRNA gene showed that this species belongs to the Spathaspora clade. The new species ferments D-xylose efficiently and is related to Candida jeffriesii and Spathaspora passalidarum, both of which also ferment D-xylose. Similar to S. passalidarum, the new species produces unconjugated asci with a single greatly elongated ascospore with curved ends. The type strain of Spathaspora arborariae sp. nov. is UFMG-HM19.1A(T) (= CBS11463(T) = NRRL Y-48658(T)).