Eric Kuhnert

Dr. Eric Kuhnert


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

14Years (2013-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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23 May 2016 in Fungal Diversity
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GLGuo Jie Li
Guo Jie Li
KHKevin D. Hyde
Kevin D. Hyde
Ruilin ZhaoRuilin Zhao
Ruilin Zhao
SHSinang Hongsanan
Sinang Hongsanan
FAFaten Awad Abdel-Aziz
Faten Awad Abdel-Aziz
Sajeewa MaharachchikumburaSajeewa Maharachchikumbura
Sajeewa Maharachchikumbura
Notes on 113 fungal taxa are compiled in this paper, including 11 new genera, 89 new species, one new subspecies, three new combinations and seven reference specimens. A wide geographic and taxonomic range of fungal taxa are detailed. In the Ascomycota the new genera Angustospora (Testudinaceae), Camporesia (Xylariaceae), Clematidis, Crassiparies (Pleosporales genera incertae sedis), Farasanispora, Longiostiolum (Pleosporales genera incertae sedis), Multilocularia (Parabambusicolaceae), Neophaeocryptopus (Dothideaceae), Parameliola (Pleosporales genera incertae sedis), and Towyspora (Lentitheciaceae) are introduced. Newly introduced species are Angustospora nilensis, Aniptodera aquibella, Annulohypoxylon albidiscum, Astrocystis thailandica, Camporesia sambuci, Clematidis italica, Colletotrichum menispermi, C. quinquefoliae, Comoclathris pimpinellae, Crassiparies quadrisporus, Cytospora salicicola, Diatrype thailandica, Dothiorella rhamni, Durotheca macrostroma, Farasanispora avicenniae, Halorosellinia rhizophorae, Humicola koreana, Hypoxylon lilloi, Kirschsteiniothelia tectonae, Lindgomyces okinawaensis, Longiostiolum tectonae, Lophiostoma pseudoarmatisporum, Moelleriella phukhiaoensis, M. pongdueatensis, Mucoharknessia anthoxanthi, Multilocularia bambusae, Multiseptospora thysanolaenae, Neophaeocryptopus cytisi, Ocellularia arachchigei, O. ratnapurensis, Ochronectria thailandica, Ophiocordyceps karstii, Parameliola acaciae, P. dimocarpi, Parastagonospora cumpignensis, Pseudodidymosphaeria phlei, Polyplosphaeria thailandica, Pseudolachnella brevifusiformis, Psiloglonium macrosporum, Rhabdodiscus albodenticulatus, Rosellinia chiangmaiensis, Saccothecium rubi, Seimatosporium pseudocornii, S. pseudorosae, Sigarispora ononidis and Towyspora aestuari. New combinations are provided for Eutiarosporella dactylidis (sexual morph described and illustrated) and Pseudocamarosporium pini. Descriptions, illustrations and / or reference specimens are designated for Aposphaeria corallinolutea, Cryptovalsa ampelina, Dothiorella vidmadera, Ophiocordyceps formosana, Petrakia echinata, Phragmoporthe conformis and Pseudocamarosporium pini. The new species of Basidiomycota are Agaricus coccyginus, A. luteofibrillosus, Amanita atrobrunnea, A. digitosa, A. gleocystidiosa, A. pyriformis, A. strobilipes, Bondarzewia tibetica, Cortinarius albosericeus, C. badioflavidus, C. dentigratus, C. duboisensis, C. fragrantissimus, C. roseobasilis, C. vinaceobrunneus, C. vinaceogrisescens, C. wahkiacus, Cyanoboletus hymenoglutinosus, Fomitiporia atlantica, F. subtilissima, Ganoderma wuzhishanensis, Inonotus shoreicola, Lactifluus armeniacus, L. ramipilosus, Leccinum indoaurantiacum, Musumecia alpina, M. sardoa, Russula amethystina subp. tengii and R. wangii are introduced. Descriptions, illustrations, notes and / or reference specimens are designated for Clarkeinda trachodes, Dentocorticium ussuricum, Galzinia longibasidia, Lentinus stuppeus and Leptocorticium tenellum. The other new genera, species new combinations are Anaeromyces robustus, Neocallimastix californiae and Piromyces finnis from Neocallimastigomycota, Phytophthora estuarina, P. rhizophorae, Salispina, S. intermedia, S. lobata and S. spinosa from Oomycota, and Absidia stercoraria, Gongronella orasabula, Mortierella calciphila, Mucor caatinguensis, M. koreanus, M. merdicola and Rhizopus koreanus in Zygomycota.

10 June 2017 in Mycological Progress
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LWLucile Wendt
Lucile Wendt
ESEsteban Benjamin Sir
Esteban Benjamin Sir
EKEric Kuhnert
Eric Kuhnert
SHSimone Heitkämper
Simone Heitkämper
CLChristopher Lambert
Christopher Lambert
Marc StadlerMarc Stadler
Marc Stadler
A multigene phylogeny was constructed, including a significant number of representative species of the main lineages in the Xylariaceae and four DNA loci the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS), the large subunit (LSU) of the nuclear rDNA, the second largest subunit of the RNA polymerase II (RPB2), and beta-tubulin (TUB2). Specimens were selected based on more than a decade of intensive morphological and chemotaxonomic work, and cautious taxon sampling was performed to cover the major lineages of the Xylariaceae; however, with emphasis on hypoxyloid species. The comprehensive phylogenetic analysis revealed a clear-cut segregation of the Xylariaceae into several major clades, which was well in accordance with previously established morphological and chemotaxonomic concepts. One of these clades contained Annulohypoxylon, Hypoxylon, Daldinia, and other related genera that have stromatal pigments and a nodulisporium-like anamorph. They are accommodated in the family Hypoxylaceae, which is resurrected and emended. Representatives of genera with a nodulisporium-like anamorph and bipartite stromata, lacking stromatal pigments (i.e. Biscogniauxia, Camillea, and Obolarina) appeared in a clade basal to the xylarioid taxa. As they clustered with Graphostroma platystomum, they are accommodated in the Graphostromataceae. The new genus Jackrogersella with J. multiformis as type species is segregated from Annulohypoxylon. The genus Pyrenopolyporus is resurrected for Hypoxylon polyporus and allied species. The genus Daldinia and its allies Entonaema, Rhopalostroma, Ruwenzoria, and Thamnomyces appeared in two separate subclades, which may warrant further splitting of Daldinia in the future, and even Hypoxylon was divided in several clades. However, more species of these genera need to be studied before a conclusive taxonomic rearrangement can be envisaged. Epitypes were designated for several important species in which living cultures and molecular data are available, in order to stabilise the taxonomy of the Xylariales.

1 October 2013 in Fungal Diversity
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Journal Article
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EKEric Kuhnert
Eric Kuhnert
JFJacques Fournier
Jacques Fournier
DPDerek Peršoh
Derek Peršoh
JLJanet Jennifer Divinagracia Luangsa-Ard
Janet Jennifer Divinagracia Luangsa-Ard
Marc StadlerMarc Stadler
Marc Stadler
Three new species of Hypoxylon (Xylariaceae) collected from Martinique in the French Caribbean are recognised by new combinations of morphological characters. Their status as undescribed taxa was supported by secondary metabolite profiling based on High performance liquid chromatography with diode array and mass spectrometric detection (HPLC/DAD-MS) as well as by comparison of ITS and partial ß-tubulin DNA sequences with related taxa. In the course of this study, the teleomorph of Nodulisporium griseobrunneum was found, and this species could be transferred to Hypoxylon. Moreover, several names in Hypoxylon are epitypified by selecting recently collected specimens from the same geographic areas as the holotypes came from. Despite the fact that our study used the hitherto most extensive taxon sampling, the phylogenetic analyses inferred from ITS and ß-tubulin sequences remain contradictory to each other, and neither genealogy was found fully in agreement with phenotype-derived traits. We conclude that the right gene (or multi-gene genealogies) to reflect the phylogeny and evolution of Hypoxylon still remains to be found. For the time being, we recommend that the application of polyphasic taxonomic concepts should be continued in taxonomic studies of Hypoxylon.

5 December 2016 in Fungal Diversity
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Journal Article
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EKEric Kuhnert
Eric Kuhnert
ESEsteban B. Sir
Esteban B. Sir
CLChristopher Lambert
Christopher Lambert
KHKevin D. Hyde
Kevin D. Hyde
AHAdriana I. Hladki
Adriana I. Hladki
Marc StadlerMarc Stadler
Marc Stadler
This study deals with an extensive evaluation focusing on phylogenetic and chemotaxonomic infrageneric relationships of the genus Annulohypoxylon (Xylariaceae, Ascomycota), whose species are ubiquitously associated with seed plants as endophytes and saprotrophs in all forested areas of the world. Using evidence from phylogenetic, chemotaxonomic and morphological data, various varieties within the genus are raised to species level, leading to the new combinations for A. areolatum (≡ A. bovei var. microsporum), A. macrosporum (≡ A. leptascum var. macrosporum), and A. microdiscum (≡ A. moriforme var. microdiscum). Annulohypoxylon substygium nom. nov. is applied for A. stygium var. annulatum and the four new tropical and subtropical species A. massivum, A. violaceopigmentum, A. viridistratum and A. yungensis are introduced. Furthermore, A. leucadendri is excluded from the genus as its morphological characters disagree with the generic concept, the recently erected A. palmicola is synonymized with A. leptascum and A. austrobahiense has been reassigned to the genus Hypoxylon. In addition, the key taxa A. annulatum and A. truncatum have been reinvestigated and epitypes have been defined. For the first time, a dichotomous key to the genus is provided. A phylogenetic β-tubulin tree in conjunction with stromatal HPLC profiles clearly shows that Annulohypoxylon comprises two distinct lineages. The A. cohaerens/multiforme group might eventually warrant segregation into a new genus as further molecular data become available.

25 May 2020 in Fungal Diversity
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Journal Article
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DWDaniel Wibberg
Daniel Wibberg
Marc StadlerMarc Stadler
Marc Stadler
CLChristopher Lambert
Christopher Lambert
BBBoyke Bunk
Boyke Bunk
CSCathrin Spröer
Cathrin Spröer
EKEric Kuhnert
Eric Kuhnert
The Hypoxylaceae (Xylariales, Ascomycota) is a diverse family of mainly saprotrophic fungi, which commonly occur in angiosperm-dominated forests around the world. Despite their importance in forest and plant ecology as well as a prolific source of secondary metabolites and enzymes, genome sequences of related taxa are scarce and usually derived from environmental isolates. To address this lack of knowledge thirteen taxonomically well-defined representatives of the family and one member of the closely related Xylariaceae were genome sequenced using combinations of Illumina and Oxford nanopore technologies or PacBio sequencing. The workflow leads to high quality draft genome sequences with an average N50 of 3.0 Mbp. A backbone phylogenomic tree was calculated based on the amino acid sequences of 4912 core genes reflecting the current accepted taxonomic concept of the Hypoxylaceae. A Percentage of Conserved Proteins (POCP) analysis revealed that 70% of the proteins are conserved within the family, a value with potential application for the definition of family boundaries within the order Xylariales. Also, Hypomontagnella spongiphila is proposed as a new marine derived lineage of Hypom. monticulosa based on in-depth genomic comparison and morphological differences of the cultures. The results showed that both species share 95% of their genes corresponding to more than 700 strain-specific proteins. This difference is not reflected by standard taxonomic assessments (morphology of sexual and asexual morph, chemotaxonomy, phylogeny), preventing species delimitation based on traditional concepts. Genetic changes are likely to be the result of environmental adaptations and selective pressure, the driving force of speciation. These data provide an important starting point for the establishment of a stable phylogeny of the Xylariales; they enable studies on evolution, ecological behavior and biosynthesis of natural products; and they significantly advance the taxonomy of fungi.

26 August 2021 in Studies in Mycology
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Journal Article
Open access
EKEric Kuhnert
Eric Kuhnert
JNJ.C. Navarro-Muñoz
J.C. Navarro-Muñoz
Kevin BeckerKevin Becker
Kevin Becker
Marc StadlerMarc Stadler
Marc Stadler
JCJ. Collemare
J. Collemare
RCR.J. Cox
R.J. Cox
To date little is known about the genetic background that drives the production and diversification of secondary metabolites in the Hypoxylaceae. With the recent availability of high-quality genome sequences for 13 representative species and one relative (Xylaria hypoxylon) we attempted to survey the diversity of biosynthetic pathways in these organisms to investigate their true potential as secondary metabolite producers. Manual search strategies based on the accumulated knowledge on biosynthesis in fungi enabled us to identify 783 biosynthetic pathways across 14 studied species, the majority of which were arranged in biosynthetic gene clusters (BGC). The similarity of BGCs was analysed with the BiG-SCAPE engine which organised the BGCs into 375 gene cluster families (GCF). Only ten GCFs were conserved across all of these fungi indicating that speciation is accompanied by changes in secondary metabolism. From the known compounds produced by the family members some can be directly correlated with identified BGCs which is highlighted herein by the azaphilone, dihydroxynaphthalene, tropolone, cytochalasan, terrequinone, terphenyl and brasilane pathways giving insights into the evolution and diversification of those compound classes. Vice versa, products of various BGCs can be predicted through homology analysis with known pathways from other fungi as shown for the identified ergot alkaloid, trigazaphilone, curvupallide, viridicatumtoxin and swainsonine BGCs. However, the majority of BGCs had no obvious links to known products from the Hypoxylaceae or other well-studied biosynthetic pathways from fungi. These findings highlight that the number of known compounds strongly underrepresents the biosynthetic potential in these fungi and that a tremendous number of unidentified secondary metabolites is still hidden. Moreover, with increasing numbers of genomes for further Hypoxylaceae species becoming available, the likelihood of revealing new biosynthetic pathways that encode new, potentially useful compounds will significantly improve. Reaching a better understanding of the biology of these producers, and further development of genetic methods for their manipulation, will be crucial to access their treasures.