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The results of a study of the light chestnut soil of an ampelocenosis located in a zone with a semi-desert-steppe regime and a low hydrothermal coefficient are presented. Analysis of the chemical composition revealed that the soil is nonsaline, saturated with bases, and deficient in individual plant nutrients. The study of the taxonomic composition of yeasts, which can act as a model group of microorganisms in the study of soil-microbiological processes, has shown the ability of this soil to play the role of a biological reservoir for storage and distribution in the natural cycle of various physiological groups of yeasts. The yeast complex included 11 species: 2 basidiomycetes and 9 ascomycetes. The yeasts Aureobasidium pullulans and Lachancea thermotolerans were significantly dominant. The yeasts were isolated by a direct plating and enrichment cultivation; the species identification of pure cultures was based on the analysis of the nucleotide sequences of the rDNA region. The accumulation of allochthonous yeasts, as well as other groups of microorganisms, influencing the biodiversity of the ampelocenosis soil, expands the potential for the participation of mycobiota in soil processes.

In a model experiment, the transformation of microbial complexes of cultivated saprotrophic bacteria and yeasts during freezing-thawing was studied in various natural substrates that are used to create soil constructions for urban landscaping and for growing herbaceous plants. The number of saprotrophic bacteria and yeasts depended both on the type of substrate and on temperature changes during freezing-thawing. At the stage of freezing of peat and soil (arable horizon) to 0 and –5°C and at the subsequent stage of thawing to 0°C, a significant increase in yeast number was registered. The maximum number of yeasts in soil and peat was 5.1 log (CFU/g). In contrast to the number of yeasts, number of saprotrophic bacteria in soil and peat was characterized by a sharp decrease when the substrate temperature was negative and peaked at 19–22 and 10°C, respectively. The maximum bacterial number in soil and peat was 7.5 and 8.0 log (CFU/g), respectively. In sand, number of both saprotrophic bacteria and yeasts did not depend on the temperature and was 5.0 log (CFU/g) for bacteria and 3.4 log(CFU/g) for yeasts at all stages of the freezing-thawing cycles. In total, 15 saprotrophic bacterial species and 29 yeast species were isolated from different components of soil constructions. At the maximum temperature of freezing in the cycles (–5°C), three bacterial species with psychrophilic properties (Flavobacterium psychrophilum) and the ability to form endospores resistant to various adverse effects (Bacillus subtilis, B. megaterium) were isolated from soil and peat. Among the yeasts isolated from soil and peat at negative temperature and also having psychrophilic properties were Candida sake, Rhodotorula glutinis, Rh. mucilaginosa, and Solicoccozyma terricola. Bacteria with psychrophilic properties, F. psychrophilum and Pseudomonas fluorescens, as well as two species of bacilli, Bacillus subtilis and B. megaterium were revealed in sand at negative temperatures. Only one yeast species, Debaryomyces hansenii, capable of surviving stress conditions in the form of ascospores, was isolated from sand at –5°C. The effect of short-term temperature drops on the microbial communities’ number and diversity dynamics in soil constructions in a model experiment showed that specialized soil constructions were able to “tolerate” short-term temperature stress drops typical of the spring and autumn period, restoring the number of initial populations after cessation of the negative impacts. This also indicates development of the soil constructions in the process of functioning, rather than their rapid degradation.

Drosophila melanogaster fruit flies are an important model for studying the multifaceted interactions between a multicellular organism and its microbiome. The nature of these interactions is largely determined by the regular changes in abundance and composition of the microbiome that occur during the host’s life. The currently available data on age- and life cycle stage-related changes in the Drosophila microbiome relate mainly to its bacterial component, while little is known about such changes in the equally important yeast component. The present work describes the quantitative and qualitative composition of the yeast component of the D. melanogaster microbiome in three laboratory lines, reared under different conditions, at four developmental stages: late larvae and adults aged 1, 7, and 14 days after eclosion. In all three lines, the total yeast abundance changed similarly with the age of insects, with the highest and lowest yeast counts in 7- and 1-day adults, respectively. In the fly lines reared on moderately unfavorable substrates supplemented with 2 and 4% NaCl, the abundance and species diversity of yeasts at all four developmental stages was higher than in the flies reared on a standard (favorable) food substrate. Our results indicate the inconstancy of the yeast component of the D. melanogaster microbiome and its regular changes with the insect’s age, which must be taken into account when studying the relationships between symbiotic yeasts and their hosts.

Yeast number and species diversity in urban soils characterized by various intensities of anthropogenic impact in the southern cities of Russia (Krasnodar, Maykop, Simferopol, and Sochi) was investigated. The soils of botanical gardens and the reference soils in the vicinities of cities were used for comparison to reveal the degree of anthropogenic impact. The maximum yeast number was found in a layer of 0–20 cm in the urban soils of Sochi and Simferopol, where it was 5.7 ± 0.2 and 5.4 ± 0.01 log (CFU/g), respectively. The minimum number of yeasts, 2.0 ± 0.1 log (CFU/g), was characteristic of a 60–80-cm layer in the soils in the vicinities of all cities. The number of yeasts was shown to depend primarily on the depth and type of soil and to a lesser extent on location. A total of 20 yeast species were isolated from the studied soils: 10 ascomycetes and 10 basidiomycetes. All basidiomycete yeasts isolated from urban soils and control soils were typical representatives of pedobiont and epiphytic yeast complexes. In the soils of the major tourist cities of Sochi and Simferopol, a high relative abundance of ascomycete species Candida sake and Meyerozyma guilliermondii was found, which fundamentally distinguished the studied soils from the ones of Krasnodar and Maykop. The cities of Sochi and Simferopol are characterized by a higher anthropogenic load compared to Krasnodar and Maykop, which is associated not only with their high population, but also with a significant tourist load. Detection in urban soils of C. sake and M. guilliermondii which, according to some data, are clinically significant, was therefore consequential.

The ecological and taxonomic study of yeast communities of vineyards in Dagestan has demonstrated significant differentiation of species diversity depending on the type of substrate and plant ontogenesis. Thirty-three out of 44 yeast species were isolated from grape berries during the long-term study of this biotope. The seasonal occurrence of yeasts in agrocoenoses is characterized by the maximum species richness during ripening of grapes in late summer and in autumn. Each stage of plant development is characterized by a specific type of yeast population, which determines the possibility of isolating yeast species from plants and the underlying soils. The DNA fingerprinting method used for Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains isolated from the vineyards of Dagestan showed their high genetic heterogeneity.

During studies on the endophytic yeast communities associated with fruits from Vietnam, three fermenting yeast strains were isolated from fruits of the coconut palm (Cocos nucifera). Phylogenetic analysis based on the sequences of the ITS regions and D1/D2 domains of the large subunit rRNA gene showed that these strains represented a single species of the Yamadazyma clade that was distinct from the other related species. The new species represented a basal branch of the clade formed by the Yamadazyma species i.e. Y. insecticola and Y. takamatsuzukensis. Based on the phylogenetic analysis and phenotypic characteristics, the studied strains were assigned to a novel species of the genus Yamadazyma, for which the name Yamadazyma cocois f.a., sp. nov. is proposed. The holotype is VCIM 4241, with the ex-type cultures VTCC 920004=VKM Y-3049=KBP Y-6091 code 17–68. The MycoBank number is MB 834435.

Relationship between symbiotic yeast and Diptera insects are studied mainly on fruit flies (Drosophilidae). Evolutionary experiments showed that changes in the composition of the yeast microbiota vectored by flies in their gut and on the body surface contributes to the adaptation of laboratory Drosophila populations to the high-salt growth medium. Although saline substrates are not commonly used by Drosophilidae in nature, species adapted to such substrates are known in other families of Diptera. Yeast communities associated with these species are studied insufficiently. This is the first report on the yeast communities associated with two Diptera species living near the White Sea, Paracoenia fumosa (Stenhammar, 1844) (Ephydridae) and Fucellia fucorum (Fallen, 1819) (Anthomyiidae). Their larvae develop in the coastal saline lagoons and in algae driven ashore. The P. fumosa yeast microbiota includes opportunistic species Pichia kluyveri Bedford ex Kudryavtsev, 1960 and P. kudriavzevii Boidin, Pignal, Besson, 1965 and is characterized by its highly variable abundance (the number of colony-forming units varies widely in different individuals). F. fucorum is characterized by a more stable yeast community, including species common in White Sea algae and coastal waters (Debaryomyces hansenii (Zopf) Lodder, Kreger-van Rij, 1952, Metschnikowia zobellii (van Uden, Castelo-Branco) van Uden, 1962, and M. bicuspidata (Metschnikoff) Kamienski, 1899). These two species of littoral flies shared no common yeast species. Moreover, none of the yeast species found in the littoral flies was detected in the evolutionary experiment on the adaptation of Drosophila to the high-salt growth medium (the similarity is limited only to the Pichia genus level). Contrasting differences in the yeast microbiome of two ecologically similar littoral species of Diptera may indicate, on the one hand, specificity, and, on the other, evolutionary plasticity of the relationship between salt-tolerant flies and yeast.

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Algeria, Phaeoacremonium adelophialidum from Vitis vinifera. Antarctica, Comoclathris antarctica from soil. Australia, Coniochaeta salicifolia as endophyte from healthy leaves of Geijera salicifolia, Eremothecium peggii in fruit of Citrus australis, Microdochium ratticaudae from stem of Sporobolus natalensis, Neocelosporium corymbiae on stems of Corymbia variegata, Phytophthora kelmanii from rhizosphere soil of Ptilotus pyramidatus, Pseudosydowia backhousiae on living leaves of Backhousia citriodora, Pseudosydowia indoor oopillyensis, Pseudosydowia louisecottisiae and Pseudosydowia queenslandica on living leaves of Eucalyptus sp. Brazil, Absidia montepascoalis from soil. Chile, Ilyonectria zarorii from soil under Maytenus boaria. Costa Rica, Colletotrichum filicis from an unidentified fern. Croatia, Mollisia endogranulata on deteriorated hardwood. Czech Republic, Arcopilus navicularis from tea bag with fruit tea, Neosetophoma buxi as endophyte from Buxus sempervirens, Xerochrysium bohemicum on surface of biscuits with chocolate glaze and filled with jam. France, Entoloma cyaneobasale on basic to calcareous soil, Fusarium aconidiale from Triticum aestivum, Fusarium juglandicola from buds of Juglans regia. Germany, Tetraploa endophytica as endophyte from Microthlaspi perfoliatum roots. India, Castanediella ambae on leaves of Mangifera indica, Lactifluus kanadii on soil under Castanopsis sp., Penicillium uttarakhandense from soil. Italy, Penicillium ferraniaense from compost. Namibia, Bezerromyces gobabebensis on leaves of unidentified succulent, Cladosporium stipagrostidicola on leaves of Stipagrostis sp., Cymostachys euphorbiae on leaves of Euphorbia sp., Deniquelata hypolithi from hypolith under a rock, Hysterobrevium walvisbayicola on leaves of unidentified tree, Knufia hypolithi and Knufia walvisbayicola from hypolith under a rock, Lapidomyces stipagrostidicola on leaves of Stipagrostis sp., Nothophaeotheca mirabibensis (incl. Nothophaeotheca gen. nov.) on persistent inflorescence remains of Blepharis obmitrata, Paramyrothecium salvadorae on twigs of Salvadora persica, Preussia procaviicola on dung of Procavia sp., Sordaria equicola on zebra dung, Volutella salvadorae on stems of Salvadora persica. Netherlands, Entoloma ammophilum on sandy soil, Entoloma pseudocruentatum on nutrient poor(acid)soil, Entoloma pudens on plant debris, amongst grasses. [...], Leslie W.S. de Freitas and colleagues express their gratitude to Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) for scholarships provided to Leslie Freitas and for the research grant provided to André Luiz Santiago; their contribution was financed by the projects ‘Diversity of Mucoromycotina in the different ecosystems of the Atlantic Rainforest of Pernambuco’ (FACEPE–First Projects Program PPP/ FACEPE/CNPq–APQ–0842-2.12/14) and ‘Biology of conservation of fungi s.l. in areas of Atlantic Forest of Northeast Brazil’ (CNPq/ICMBio 421241/ 2017-9) H.B. Lee was supported by the Graduate Program for the Undiscovered Taxa of Korea (NIBR202130202). The study of O.V. Morozova, E.F. Malysheva, V.F. Malysheva, I.V. Zmitrovich, and L.B. Kalinina was carried out within the framework of a research project of the Komarov Botanical Institute RAS (АААА-А19-119020890079-6) using equipment of its Core Facility Centre ‘Cell and Molecular Technologies in Plant Science’. The work of O. V. Morozova, L.B. Kalinina, T. Yu. Svetasheva, and E.A. Zvyagina was financially supported by Russian Foundation for Basic Research project no. 20-04-00349. E.A. Zvyagina and T.Yu. Svetasheva are grateful to A.V. Alexandrova, A.E. Kovalenko, A.S. Baykalova for the loan of specimens, T.Y. James, E.F. Malysheva and V.F. Malysheva for sequencing. J.D. Reyes acknowledges B. Dima for comparing the holotype sequence of Cortinarius bonachei with the sequences in his database. A. Mateos and J.D. Reyes acknowledge L. Quijada for reviewing the phylogeny and S. de la Peña- Lastra and P. Alvarado for their support and help. Vladimir I. Kapitonov and colleagues are grateful to Brigitta Kiss for help with their molecular studies. This study was conducted under research projects of the Tobolsk Complex Scientific Station of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (N АААА-А19-119011190112-5). E. Larsson acknowledges the Swedish Taxonomy Initiative, SLU Artdatabanken, Uppsala (dha.2019.4.3-13). The study of D.B. Raudabaugh and colleagues was supported by the Schmidt Science Fellows, in partnership with the Rhodes Trust. Gregorio Delgado is grateful to Michael Manning and Kamash Pillai (Eurofins EMLab P&K) for provision of laboratory facilities. Jose G. Maciá-Vicente acknowledges support from the German Research Foundation under grant MA7171/1-1, and from the Landes-Offensive zur Entwicklung Wissenschaftlich-ökonomischer Exzellenz (LOEWE) of the state of Hesse within the framework of the Cluster for Integrative Fungal Research (IPF). Thanks are also due to the authorities of the Cabañeros National Park and Los Alcornocales Natural Park for granting the collection permit and for support during field work. The study of Alina V. Alexandrova was carried out as part of the Scientific Project of the State Order of the Government of Russian Federation to Lomonosov Moscow State University No. 121032300081-7. Michał Gorczak was financially supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education through the Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw intramural grant DSM 0117600- 13. M. Gorczak acknowledges M. Klemens for sharing a photo of the Białowieża Forest logging site and M. Senderowicz for help with preparing the illustration. Ivona Kautmanová and D. Szabóová were funded by the Operational Program of Research and Development and co-financed with the European Fund for Regional Development (EFRD). ITMS 26230120004: ‘Building of research and development infrastructure for investigation of genetic biodiversity of organisms and joining IBOL initiative’. Ishika Bera, Aniket Ghosh, Jorinde Nuytinck and Annemieke Verbeken are grateful to the Director, Botanical Survey of India (Kolkata), Head of the Department of Botany & Microbiology & USIC Dept. HNB Garhwal University, Srinagar, Garhwal for providing research facilities. Ishika Bera and Aniket Ghosh acknowledge the staff of the forest department of Arunachal Pradesh for facilitating the macrofungal surveys to the restricted areas. Sergey Volobuev was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (RSF project N 19-77- 00085). Aleksey V. Kachalkin and colleagues were supported by the Russian Science Foundation (grant No. 19-74-10002). The study of Anna M. Glushakova was carried out as part of the Scientific Project of the State Order of the Government of Russian Federation to Lomonosov Moscow State University No. 121040800174-6. Tracey V. Steinrucken and colleagues were supported by AgriFutures Australia (Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation), through funding from the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, as part of its Rural Research and Development for Profit program (PRJ-010527). Neven Matočec and colleagues thank the Croatian Science Foundation for their financial support under the project grant HRZZ-IP-2018-01-1736 (ForFungiDNA). Ana Pošta thanks the Croatian Science Foundation for their support under the grant HRZZ-2018-09-7081. The research of Milan Spetik and co-authors was supported by Internal Grant of Mendel University in Brno No. IGAZF/ 2021-SI1003. K.C. Rajeshkumar thanks SERB, the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India for providing financial support under the project CRG/2020/000668 and the Director, Agharkar Research Institute for providing research facilities. Nikhil Ashtekar thanks CSIR-HRDG, INDIA, for financial support under the SRF fellowship (09/670(0090)/2020-EMRI), and acknowledges the support of the DIC Microscopy Facility, established by Dr Karthick Balasubramanian, B&P (Plants) Group, ARI, Pune. The research of Alla Eddine Mahamedi and co-authors was supported by project No. CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/16_017/0002334, Czech Republic. Tereza Tejklová is thanked for providing useful literature. A. Polhorský and colleagues were supported by the Operational Program of Research and Development and co-financed with the European fund for Regional Development (EFRD), ITMS 26230120004: Building of research and development infrastructure for investigation of genetic biodiversity of organisms and joining IBOL initiative. Yu Pei Tan and colleagues thank R. Chen for her technical support. Ernest Lacey thanks the Cooperative Research Centres Projects scheme (CRCPFIVE000119) for its support. Suchada Mongkolsamrit and colleagues were financially supported by the Platform Technology Management Section, National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (BIOTEC), Project Grant No. P19-50231. Dilnora Gouliamova and colleagues were supported by a grant from the Bulgarian Science Fund (KP-06-H31/19). The research of Timofey A. Pankratov was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (grant No. 19-04-00297a). Gabriel Moreno and colleagues wish to express their gratitude to L. Monje and A. Pueblas of the Department of Drawing and Scientific Photography at the University of Alcalá for their help in the digital preparation of the photographs, and to J. Rejos, curator of the AH herbarium, for his assistance with the specimens examined in the present study. Vit Hubka was supported by the Charles University Research Centre program No. 204069. Alena Kubátová was supported by The National Programme on Conservation and Utilization of Microbial Genetic Resources Important for Agriculture (Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic). The Kits van Waveren Foundation (Rijksherbariumfonds Dr E. Kits van Waveren, Leiden, Netherlands) contributed substantially to the costs of sequencing and travelling expenses for M. Noordeloos. The work of B. Dima was supported by the ÚNKP-20-4 New National Excellence Program of the Ministry for Innovation and Technology from the source of the National Research, Development and Innovation Fund, and by the ELTE Thematic Excellence Programme 2020 supported by the National Research, Development and Innovation Office of Hungary (TKP2020-IKA-05). The Norwegian Entoloma studies received funding from the Norwegian Biodiversity Information Centre (NBIC), and the material was partly sequenced through NorBOL. Gunnhild Marthinsen and Katriina Bendiksen (Natural History Museum, University of Oslo, Norway) are acknowledged for performing the main parts of the Entoloma barcoding work. Asunción Morte is grateful to AEI/FEDER, UE (CGL2016-78946-R) and Fundación Séneca - Agencia de Ciencia y Tecnología de la Región de Murcia (20866/PI/18) for financial support. Vladimír Ostrý was supported by the Ministry of Health, Czech Republic - conceptual development of research organization (National Institute of Public Health – NIPH, IN 75010330). Konstanze Bensch (Westerdijk Fungal Biodiversity Institute, Utrecht) is thanked for correcting the spelling of various Latin epithets.

BACKGROUND Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) offer very good prospects for the production of cheap and high-quality dietary protein. This insect is able to consume low-quality substrates, including food waste. The properties and safety of the compost obtained are largely determined by its microbiome. However, while the bacterial component of the BSFL-compost microbiome has been much studied, little is known about its fungal component. In plant-based rearing substrates both the biomass and the metabolic activity of fungi often exceed the biomass and the activity of prokaryotes. So, the purpose of this study was to investigate the fungal community of the compost produced by BSF larvae reared on a food waste substrate. RESULTS Community structure was determined by metabarcoding of the ITS (internal transcribed spacer) region. Species composition and abundance were determined using the plating technique and subsequent identification of the isolated pure cultures. It was found that the primary mycobiome of the food waste substrate that was used consisted of 19 families, represented mainly by phytopathogenic and endophytic genera. Larva incubation led to the complete elimination of all mycelial fungi from the resulting compost. The final mycobiome consisted of only two yeast species, Pichia kudriavzevii and Diutina rugosa, with a total abundance of 1.2 × 107 CFU g-1 . CONCLUSIONS The rearing of BSFL led to the complete elimination of mycelial fungi from its feed substrate. The final compost lacked harmful fungi, including molds. This information may be crucial for BSF compost utilization. The phenomenon was also an interesting aspect of zoomicrobial interactions in nature and agriculture. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

The soils of streets, urban parks and suburban areas were examined for yeasts in the summer of 2020 on the territory of the southern cities of Russia and the Republic of Crimea: Krasnodar, Maykop, Sochi and Simferopol. The results of this study are compared with the results of a previous study carried out in these cities in 2019. This study was conducted three months after the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a sustained decline in household waste deposition in these areas. The number of tourists visiting these southern cities decreased significantly, and the number of walkers and visitors to urban parks fell sharply. In 2020, after the decline of household waste loads, the yeast abundance was slightly but reliably higher than in 2019. A total of 30 yeast species were observed - 11 ascomycetes and 19 basidiomycetes. This was more than in 2019 and was caused by twice as many autochthonous basidiomycetous yeast species (natural core community), which were found in urban soils only after the reduction in household waste in the environment

Background. For people with hypersensitivity, the problem of allergenic and pyrogenic environmental load is of great importance. Material and methods. Hostel and apartment dust in Moscow was analyzed for bacteria and fungi by microbiological and molecular methods. Results. Aerobic and facultative anaerobic bacteria prevailed, numbers varying from 4.8×104 to 2.0×109 MPN/g of dust in hostels (Me=4.8×106 MPN/g) and from 3.0×104 to 1.0×109 of dust MPN/g in apartments (Me=3.8×106 MPN/g). Gram-positive bacteria were revealed in 100% of apartments and in 80% of hostels, Gram-negative, in 47% of apartments, and in 73% of hostels. 9 yeast species were isolated: Filobasidium wieringae, F.magnum, Papiliotrema flavescens, Vishniacozyma victoriae, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, Debaryomyces hansenii, Candida parapsilosis, C.tropicalis, Meyerozyma guilliermondii. R.mucilaginosa dominated (34.5% and 33.4%). Candida spp. were more frequent in hostels, while Filobasidium spp., in apartments. Yeast cell number varied from 3.5×103 to 1.3×106 CFU/g of dust in hostels (Me=3.2×104 CFU/g), and from 2.3×103 to 2.5×106 CFU/g of dust in apartments (Me=3.3×104 CFU/g). 56 mycelial fungi species were revealed. Penicillium chrysogenum (100%), Aspergillus niger (100%), Rhizopus stolonifer (100%), A.ochraceus (80%), Mucor plumbeus (67%), P cyclopium (60%) were the most frequent in hostels. P.cyclopium (60%), P.chrysogenum (60%) were the most frequent in apartments. Mold concentration varied from 1.8×105 to 7.5×106 CFU/g of dust in hostels (Me=5.2×105 CFU/g) and from 3.3×103 to 2.3×105 CFU/g of dust in apartments (Me=4.0×104 CFU/g). Micromycetes complexes were similar in different hostels but differed in apartments. Discussion. The species diversity and CFU counts of microorganisms do not give the true values of the concentration of allergenic and pyrogenic compounds. Conclusion. We propose complex assessment involving identification of both allergenic and pyrogenic compounds and producers.

A destructive peat horizon Tmd of bare peat circles on flat-topped peat mounds in the north of Western Siberia differs from peat horizons (T) of typical peat soils in its higher density, water content, and comminution of peat residues; lower microbial biomass; low mineralization and hydrolase activities; low physiological diversity of hydrolytic bacteria; and specific composition of the fungal complex with an uncharacteristically high proportion and quantity of psychrophilic yeasts Leucosporidium drummii. Specific respiration rate and hydrolase activity in the Tmd and T horizons are relatively close, which indicates that, in general, the metabolic activity of microorganisms decomposing the organic matter of peat and increasing the degree of peat decomposition remains unchanged in the soils of bare peat circles.

Symbiotic microbes affect many aspects of the life of multicellular organisms and may favor their adaptation to a changing environment, but there is little direct experimental evidence of such a contribution. To assess the possible role of the microbiome in the adaptation of Drosophila melanogaster to a high-NaCl feed substrate, we used two laboratory lines of salt-adapted flies (C1, C2) and two control lines cultivated on a standard feed without salt (H1, H2). We have already shown that the presowing of homogenate of flies C1 on the surface of a saline feed increases the breeding efficiency and enhances the development of drosophila larvae in comparison with a homogenate of H1 flies. We repeated this experiment for lines C2 and H2 and obtained similar data, which proves the reproducibility of the revealed effect. In addition, we found contrasting differences in the number and taxonomic composition of yeast in drosophila homogenates of the salt-adapted and control lines. The results correspond to the assumption that changes in the symbiotic microbiome, including its yeast component, may contribute to the adaptation of drosophila to unfavorable feed substrates. The possible evolutionary consequences of such a contribution are discussed in this work.

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Australia, Chaetomella pseudocircinoseta and Coniella pseudodiospyri on Eucalyptus microcorys leaves, Cladophialophora eucalypti, Teratosphaeria dunnii and Vermiculariopsiella dunnii on Eucalyptus dunnii leaves, Cylindrium grande and Hypsotheca eucalyptorum on Eucalyptus grandis leaves, Elsinoe salignae on Eucalyptus saligna leaves, Marasmius lebeliae on litter of regenerating subtropical rainforest, Phialoseptomonium eucalypti (incl. Phialoseptomonium gen. nov.) on Eucalyptus grandis × camaldulensis leaves, Phlogicylindrium pawpawense on Eucalyptus tereticornis leaves, Phyllosticta longicauda as an endophyte from healthy Eustrephus latifolius leaves, Pseudosydowia eucalyptorum on Eucalyptus sp. leaves, Saitozyma wallum on Banksia aemula leaves, Teratosphaeria henryi on Corymbia henryi leaves. Brazil, Aspergillus bezerrae, Backusella azygospora, Mariannaea terricola and Talaromyces pernambucoensis from soil, Calonectria matogrossensis on Eucalyptus urophylla leaves, Calvatia brasiliensis on soil, Carcinomyces nordestinensis on Bromelia antiacantha leaves, Dendryphiella stromaticola on small branches of an unidentified plant, Nigrospora brasiliensis on Nopalea cochenillifera leaves, Penicillium alagoense as a leaf endophyte on a Miconia sp., Podosordaria nigrobrunnea on dung, Spegazzinia bromeliacearum as a leaf endophyte on Tilandsia catimbauensis, Xylobolus brasiliensis on decaying wood. Bulgaria, Kazachstania molopis from the gut of the beetle Molops piceus. Croatia, Mollisia endocrystallina from a fallen decorticated Picea abies tree trunk. Ecuador, Hygrocybe rodomaculata on soil. Hungary, Alfoldia vorosii (incl.Alfoldia gen. nov.) from Juniperus communis roots, Kiskunsagia ubrizsyi (incl. Kiskunsagia gen. nov.) from Fumana procumbens roots. India, Aureobasidium tremulum as laboratory contaminant, Leucosporidium himalayensis and Naganishia indica from windblown dust on glaciers. Italy, Neodevriesia cycadicola on Cycas sp. leaves, Pseudocercospora pseudomyrticola on Myrtus communis leaves, Ramularia pistaciae on Pistacia lentiscus leaves, Neognomoniopsis quercina (incl. Neognomoniopsis gen. nov.) on Quercus ilex leaves. Japan, Diaporthe fructicola on Passiflora edulis × P. edulis f. flavicarpa fruit, Entoloma nipponicum on leaf litter in a mixed Cryptomeria japonica and Acer spp. forest. Macedonia, Astraeus macedonicus on soil. Malaysia, Fusicladium eucalyptigenum on Eucalyptus sp. twigs, Neoacrodontiella eucalypti (incl. Neoacrodontiella gen. nov.) on Eucalyptus urophylla leaves. Mozambique, Meliola gorongosensis on dead Philenoptera violacea leaflets. Nepal, Coniochaeta dendrobiicola from Dendriobium lognicornu roots. New Zealand, Neodevriesia sexualis and Thozetella neonivea on Archontophoenix cunninghamiana leaves. Norway, Calophoma sandfjordenica from a piece of board on a rocky shoreline, Clavaria parvispora on soil, Didymella finnmarkica from a piece of Pinus sylvestris driftwood. Poland, Sugiyamaella trypani from soil. Portugal, Colletotrichum feijoicola from Acca sellowiana. Russia, Crepidotus tobolensis on Populus tremula debris, Entoloma ekaterinae, Entoloma erhardii and Suillus gastroflavus on soil, Nakazawaea ambrosiae from the galleries of Ips typographus under the bark of Picea abies. Slovenia, Pluteus ludwigii on twigs of broadleaved trees. South Africa, Anungitiomyces stellenboschiensis (incl. Anungitiomyces gen. nov.) and Niesslia stellenboschiana on Eucalyptus sp. leaves, Beltraniella pseudoportoricensis on Podocarpus falcatus leaf litter, Corynespora encephalarti on Encephalartos sp. leaves, Cytospora pavettae on Pavetta revoluta leaves, Helminthosporium erythrinicola on Erythrina humeana leaves, Helminthosporium syzygii on a Syzygium sp. barkcanker, Libertasomyces aloeticus on Aloe sp. leaves, Penicillium lunae from Musa sp. fruit, Phyllosticta lauridiae on Lauridia tetragona leaves, Pseudotruncatella bolusanthi (incl. Pseudotruncatellaceae fam. nov.) and Dactylella bolusanthi on Bolusanthus speciosus leaves. Spain, Apenidiella foetida on submerged plant debris, Inocybe grammatoides on Quercus ilex subsp. ilex forest humus, Ossicaulis salomii on soil, Phialemonium guarroi from soil. Thailand, Pantospora chromolaenae on Chromolaena odorata leaves. Ukraine, Cadophora helianthi from Helianthus annuus stems. USA, Boletus pseudopinophilus on soil under slash pine, Botryotrichum foricae, Penicillium americanum and Penicillium minnesotense from air. Vietnam, Lycoperdon vietnamense on soil. Morphological and culture characteristics are supported by DNA barcodes.

The diversity of yeasts has grown rapidly as the discovery of new species has benefited from intensified sampling and largely improved identification techniques. An environmental study typically reports the isolation of yeast species, some of which are new to science. Rare species represented by a few isolates often do not result in a taxonomic description. Nucleic acid sequences from these undescribed yeasts remain in public sequence databases, often without a proper taxonomic placement. This study presents a constrained phylogenetic analysis for many rare yeasts from unpublished but publicly available DNA sequences and from studies previously conducted by the authors of this work. We demonstrate that single isolates are an important source of taxonomic findings such as including new genera and species. Independent surveys performed during the last 20 years on a large geographic scale yielded a number of single strains, which were proved to be conspecific in the phylogenetic analyses presented here. The following new species were resolved and described: Vustinia terrea Kachalkin, Turchetti & Yurkov gen. nov. et sp. nov.; Udeniomyces caspiensis Kachalkin sp. nov.; Udeniomyces orazovii Kachalkin sp. nov.; Tausonia rosea Kachalkin sp. nov.; Itersonilia diksonensis Kachalkin sp. nov.; Krasilnikovozyma fibulata Glushakova & Kachalkin, Kwoniella fici Turchetti sp. nov.; Heterocephalacria fruticeti f.a. Carvalho, Roehl, Yurkov & Sampaio sp. nov.; Heterocephalacria gelida f.a. Turchetti & Kachalkin sp. nov.; Heterocephalacria hypogea f.a. Carvalho, Roehl, Yurkov & Sampaio sp. nov.; Heterocephalacria lusitanica f.a. Inacio, Carvalho, Roehl, Yurkov & Sampaio sp. nov.; Piskurozyma arborea Yurkov, Kachalkin, Masinova & Baldrian sp. nov.; Piskurozyma silvicultrix Turchetti, Masinova, Baldrian & Yurkov sp. nov.; Piskurozyma stramentorum Yurkov, Masinova & Baldrian sp. nov.; Naganishia nivalis Turchetti sp. nov.; and Yurkovia nerthusi Yurkov & Begerow, sp. nov. In addition, two new combinations were proposed Krasilnikovozyma curviuscula (Babeva, Lisichkina, Reshetova & Danilevich) Yurkov, Kachalkin & Sampaio comb. nov. and Hannaella taiwanensis (F.L. Lee & C.H. Huang) Yurkov comb. nov. The order Cyphobasidiales T. Spribille & H. Mayrhofer is rejected in favor of the older name Erythrobasidiales R. Bauer, Begerow, J.P. Sampaio, M. Weiss & Oberwinkler. Other potential novel species identified in this paper await future description. Phylogenetic placement of yet unpublished sequences is believed to facilitate species descriptions and improve classification of yeasts from environmental sequence libraries.

The unambiguous application of fungal names is important to communicate scientific findings. Names are critical for (clinical) diagnostics, legal compliance, and regulatory controls, such as biosafety, food security, quarantine regulations, and industrial applications. Consequently, the stability of the taxonomic system and the traceability of nomenclatural changes is crucial for a broad range of users and taxonomists. The unambiguous application of names is assured by the preservation of nomenclatural history and the physical organisms representing a name. Fungi are extremely diverse in terms of ecology, lifestyle, and methods of study. Predominantly unicellular fungi known as yeasts are usually investigated as living cultures. Methods to characterize yeasts include physiological (growth) tests and experiments to induce a sexual morph; both methods require viable cultures. Thus, the preservation and availability of viable reference cultures are important, and cultures representing reference material are cited in species descriptions. Historical surveys revealed drawbacks and inconsistencies between past practices and modern requirements as stated in the International Code of Nomenclature for Algae, Fungi, and Plants (ICNafp). Improper typification of yeasts is a common problem, resulting in a large number invalid yeast species names. With this opinion letter, we address the problem that culturable microorganisms, notably some fungi and algae, require specific provisions under the ICNafp. We use yeasts as a prominent example of fungi known from cultures. But viable type material is important not only for yeasts, but also for other cultivable Fungi that are characterized by particular morphological structures (a specific type of spores), growth properties, and secondary metabolites. We summarize potential proposals which, in our opinion, will improve the stability of fungal names, in particular by protecting those names for which the reference material can be traced back to the original isolate.

During an investigation of the yeast communities associated with wild fruit shrubs in Dagestan (Caucasus, Russia), four fermenting ascospore-producing yeast strains were isolated from leaves of the Georgian honeysuckle (Lonicera iberica M. Bieb.) and from soil underneath this plant. Phylogenetic analyses based on concatenated sequences of the ITS region and D1/D2 domains of the large subunit rRNA gene and concatenated sequences of the ribosomal DNA cystron, RPB2 and TEF1 genes showed that the isolated strains represented a new species of the genus Zygotorulaspora. The new species was placed in the basal position to other species of the clade and close to Zygotorulaspora mrakii. Based on the results of phylogenetic analyses and the phenotypic characteristics of the four studied strains, a novel species is described, for which the name Zygotorulaspora dagestanica sp. nov. is proposed. The holotype is KBP Y-4591T, three metabolically inactive cryopreserved isotype cultures are DSM 100088, VKM Y-3060 and VKPM Y-4318. The MycoBank number is MB 838285.

The yeast number and species diversity in feces of pigeons (Columba livia) were studied in various locations of the city of Moscow: parks, playgrounds and school grounds. The total number and species composition of yeasts in feces depended on the isolation temperature. The average yeast number at a cultivation temperature of 25 °C was 3.2 × 10

Yeast abundance and diversity were studied in the soils (topsoil) of Moscow city: urban soils under lawn vegetation and close to the areas of household waste disposal, as well as in zonal soddy-podzolic soils (retisols) in parks (Losiny Ostrov and Izmailovo). The numbers of soil yeasts were similar in all studied urban biocenoses (on average ~3.5 × 103 CFU/g). From all studied soils, 54 yeast species were isolated. The highest yeast diversity was found in the soils adjacent to the areas of household waste storage. Soils from different urban sites were found to have different ratios of ascomycetous and basidiomycetous yeasts: basidiomycetes predominated in urban soils under lawn vegetation, while in the areas close to the waste disposal sites their share was considerably lower. The differences between the studied urban soils were also found in the structure of soil yeast complexes. In urban soils with high anthropogenic impact, the isolation frequency of clinically important yeast species (Candida parapsilosis, C. tropicalis, Diutina catenulata, and Pichia kudriavzevii) was as high as 35% of all studied samples, while its share in the community was 17%. The factors responsible for development of specific features of yeast communities in various urban soils are discussed in the paper.

The number and species diversity of yeasts in urban soils (urbanozems) affected by heating mains and in epiphytic yeast complexes of grasses growing above them were studied. The number of yeasts in the soil reached 103–104 CFU/g; on the plants, 107 CFU/g. Significant (by an order of magnitude) increase in the total number of soil yeasts in the zone of heating mains in comparison with the surrounding soil was found in winter period. Overall, 25 species of yeasts were isolated in our study. Yeast community of studied urbanozems was dominated by the Candida sake, an eurybiont of the temperate zone and other natural ecotopes with relatively low temperatures, but its share was minimal in the zone of heating mains. In general, the structure of soil and epiphytic yeast complexes in the zones of heating mains differed from that in the surrounding area by higher species diversity and a lower share of pigmented species among the epiphytic yeasts. The study demonstrated that the number and species structure of soil yeast communities in urban soils change significantly under the influence of the temperature factor and acquire a mosaic distribution pattern.

The analysis of the number and species structure of yeast communities of urban soils near the sites of the household waste storage in the city of Moscow was executed using a standard method for sowing glucose-peptone-yeast medium. In all studied soils there were found yeast fungi whose abundance exceeds the indices for undisturbed soils. The identification of the collection of isolated strains based on the analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the D1/D2 domains of the large subunit of rDNA showed in urban soils the presence of 33 yeast fungi, a significant proportion which are species - Candida parapsilosis, C. tropicalis, Diutina catenulata, clinically important for the health of people. An analysis of the taxonomic structure of urban soils also showed marked changes in yeast groups compared to undisturbed soils: a lower proportion of basidiomycetes and a lack of typical pedobionts of the genus Solicoccozyma. The data obtained in the course of the conducted research testify to the advisability of observing the existing standards for storing household waste and the need for additional measures to reduce the risks associated with the presence of clinically important yeast species in similar zones within the city.

The study of yeast communities in chestnut soils (Kastanozems) under vineyards in the Republic of Dagestan made it possible to isolate 20 yeast species. Most of the yeasts under vineyards belonged to ascomycetes, among which species of the Saccharomycetaceae family (in particular, Saccharomyces cerevisiae) comprised a significant part. The obtained results indicate that the soils under vineyards keep the pool of microbial diversity and ensure preservation of many species typical for grapes. The method of enrichment culture on grape juice medium proved to be more efficient than other methods of analysis with respect to the number of isolated species and the rate of their detection. However, implementation of different techniques to study yeasts’ diversity can give somewhat different results; a set of methods should be used for an integrated analysis.

Yeast abundance and species diversity in the lichens collected at the Kindo Peninsula (Karelia) were studied. A total of 14 lichen species analyzed belonged to the genera Bryoria, Cladonia, Hypogymnia, Icmadophila, Nephroma, Peltigera, and Ramalina. Abundance of cultured yeasts in lichens was intermediate between soil and phyllosphere. The average yeast number on lichens was ~2.5 × 103 CFU/g, while it exceeded 8 × 103 CFU/g on plants and reached only 1 × 103 CFU/g in soil. Yeast population of different parts of Cladonia lichens was found to vary significantly in abundance, species diversity, and community structure. The highest yeast abundance and diversity were revealed in the growth zone. Fifteen yeast species were isolated from lichens, including 6 basidiomycetous and 9 ascomycetous ones. Unlike soils and plants, yeast population of lichens consisted mainly of ascomycetous species, with predominance of Candida sphagnicola and anamorphous yeasts of the genus Dothiora. These results show that yeasts from different taxonomic and ecological groups are a necessary component of lichens; conditions favoring the preservation and development of specific yeast communities differing from the typical soil and phyllosphere yeast complexes are formed in the lichens of northern taiga forests.

Abundance and taxonomic structure of yeast communities on the surface and in the tissues of various plants of the Nikitsky Botanical Garden was studied. A total of 22 yeast species were isolated, including rare and new species. Yeast numbers on the studied plant substrates were varied within a broad range (8 × 102‒2.5 × 107 CFU/g), reaching the maximum in Verbascum thapsus flowers, on the surface and inside the fruits of Rubus sp. and Ficus carica. Epiphytic and endophytic yeast communities of Ficus carica fruits were studied in dynamics, from fruit formation until their complete maturation and senescence. Specific properties of the yeast communities of the Nikitsky Botanical Garden plants and the features of the yeast communities from fig fruits are discussed in the paper.

The number and taxonomic structure of the yeast complexes were investigated in the full profiles of the soddy-podzolic soil (Central Forest State Nature Biosphere Reserve), dark gray forest soil (Kaluzhskie Zaseki Reserve), and chernozem (Privolzhskaya Forest-Steppe Reserve). In all these soils, the number of yeasts was maximal (104 CFU/g) directly under the litter; it drastically decreased with the depth. However, at the depth of 120–160 cm, the number of yeasts significantly increased in all the soils; their maximum was found in the illuvial horizon of the soddy-podzolic soil. Such a statistically significant increase in the number of yeasts at a considerable depth was found for the first time. Different groups of yeasts were present in the yeast communities of different soils. The species structure of yeast communities changed little in each soil: the same species were isolated both from the soil surface and from the depth of more than 2 m. The results showed that yeasts could be used for soil bioindication on the basis of specific yeast complexes in the profiles of different soil types rather than individual indicative species.

The current state of scientific researches in lichen microbiology was reviewed. Analysis of the literature revealed the main areas and fundamental issues which refer to investigation of microbial consortia in lichen bodies. Special attention was focused on analysis of the prokaryotic community which plays a structural and functional role and is involved in metabolism and regulation of activity of the lichen symbiosis as a whole. In the review, for the first time the information on the yeast community, of which some members do not occur presently in other environmental substrates, was summarized. The data on the protozoa inhabiting lichen thalli were also provided. The reviewed literature enabled us to consider the growing and decaying thallus as a complex ecosystem with specific levels of regulation of abundance, taxonomic diversity, and activity of the members of five kingdoms: fungi, plants, protozoa, eubacteria, and archaea.

Yeast abundance and species diversity of endophytic complexes in galls (cecidia) formed on the leaves of Salix fragilis, Salix caprea, Quercus robur, Tilia cordata, and Ulmus laevis and the epiphytic yeast communities of undamaged leaves of these plants were studied. Dynamics of yeast abundance in the galls was significantly different from that of the epiphytic yeast communities. Maximum numbers of endophytic yeast cells in the galls (up to 104 CFU/g) were comparable to abundance of epiphytic yeasts. A total of 14 species of endophytic yeasts were isolated from galls of different plants. Ascomycetous yeasts were found to predominate in the insect galls on willows and oak, while basidiomycetous yeasts dominated in mite galls on linden and elm, as well as on plant leaves. These results indicate that gall formation may be considered not only as a bidirectional pathological process of the interaction between plants and invertebrates, but also as a process in which the endophytic microbial population of the galls plays an important role.

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Antarctica, Cladosporium arenosum from marine sediment sand. Argentina, Kosmimatamyces alatophylus (incl. Kosmimatamyces gen. nov.) from soil. Australia, Aspergillus banksianus, Aspergillus kumbius, Aspergillus luteorubrus, Aspergillus malvicolor and Aspergillus nanangensis from soil, Erysiphe medicaginis from leaves of Medicago polymorpha, Hymenotorrendiella communis on leaf litter of Eucalyptus bicostata, Lactifluus albopicri and Lactifluus austropiperatus on soil, Macalpinomyces collinsiae on Eriachne benthamii, Marasmius vagus on soil, Microdochium dawsoniorum from leaves of Sporobolus natalensis, Neopestalotiopsis nebuloides from leaves of Sporobolus elongatus, Pestalotiopsis etonensis from leaves of Sporobolus jacquemontii, Phytophthora personensis from soil associated with dying Grevillea mccutcheonii. Brazil, Aspergillus oxumiae from soil, Calvatia baixaverdensis on soil, Geastrum calycicoriaceum on leaf litter, Greeneria kielmeyerae on leaf spots of Kielmeyera coriacea. Chile, Phytophthora aysenensis on collar rot and stem of Aristotelia chilensis. Croatia, Mollisia gibbospora on fallen branch of Fagus sylvatica. Czech Republic, Neosetophoma hnaniceana from Buxus sempervirens. Ecuador, Exophiala frigidotolerans from soil. Estonia, Elaphomyces bucholtzii in soil. France, Venturia paralias from leaves of Euphorbia paralias. India, Cortinarius balteatoindicus and Cortinarius ulkhagarhiensis on leaf litter. Indonesia, Hymenotorrendiella indonesiana on Eucalyptus urophylla leaf litter. Italy, Penicillium taurinense from indoor chestnut mill. Malaysia, Hemileucoglossum kelabitense on soil, Satchmopsis pini on dead needles of Pinus tecunumanii. Poland, Lecanicillium praecognitum on insects' frass. Portugal, Neodevriesia aestuarina from saline water. Republic of Korea, Gongronella namwonensis from freshwater. Russia, Candida pellucida from Exomias pellucidus, Heterocephalacria septentrionalis as endophyte from Cladonia rangiferina, Vishniacozyma phoenicis from dates fruit, Volvariella paludosa from swamp. Slovenia, Mallocybe crassivelata on soil. South Africa, Beltraniella podocarpi, Hamatocanthoscypha podocarpi, Coleophoma podocarpi and Nothoseiridium podocarpi (incl. Nothoseiridium gen. nov.)from leaves of Podocarpus latifolius, Gyrothrix encephalarti from leaves of Encephalartos sp., Paraphyton cutaneum from skin of human patient, Phacidiella alsophilae from leaves of Alsophila capensis, and Satchmopsis metrosideri on leaf litter of Metrosideros excelsa. Spain, Cladophialophora cabanerensis from soil, Cortinarius paezii on soil, Cylindrium magnoliae from leaves of Magnolia grandiflora, Trichophoma cylindrospora (incl. Trichophoma gen. nov.) from plant debris, Tuber alcaracense in calcareus soil, Tuber buendiae in calcareus soil. Thailand, Annulohypoxylon spougei on corticated wood, Poaceascoma filiforme from leaves of unknown Poaceae. UK, Dendrostoma luteum on branch lesions of Castanea sativa, Ypsilina buttingtonensis from heartwood of Quercus sp. Ukraine, Myrmecridium phragmiticola from leaves of Phragmites australis. USA, Absidia pararepens from air, Juncomyces californiensis (incl. Juncomyces gen. nov.) from leaves of Juncus effusus, Montagnula cylindrospora from a human skin sample, Muriphila oklahomaensis (incl. Muriphila gen. nov.)on outside wall of alcohol distillery, Neofabraea eucalyptorum from leaves of Eucalyptus macrandra, Diabolocovidia claustri (incl. Diabolocovidia gen. nov.)from leaves of Serenoa repens, Paecilomyces penicilliformis from air, Pseudopezicula betulae from leaves of leaf spots of Populus tremuloides. Vietnam, Diaporthe durionigena on branches of Durio zibethinus and Roridomyces pseudoirritans on rotten wood. Morphological and culture characteristics are supported by DNA barcodes.

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Australia, Austroboletus asper on soil, Cylindromonium alloxyli on leaves of Alloxylon pinnatum, Davidhawksworthia quintiniae on leaves of Quintinia sieberi, Exophiala prostantherae on leaves of Prostanthera sp., Lactifluus lactiglaucus on soil, Linteromyces quintiniae (incl. Linteromyces gen. nov.) on leaves of Quintinia sieberi, Lophotrichus medusoides from stem tissue of Citrus garrawayi, Mycena pulchra on soil, Neocalonectria tristaniopsidis (incl. Neocalonectria gen. nov.)and Xyladictyochaeta tristaniopsidis on leaves of Tristaniopsis collina, Parasarocladium tasmanniae on leaves of Tasmannia insipida, Phytophthora aquae-cooljarloo from pond water, Serendipita whamiae as endophyte from roots of Eriochilus cucullatus, Veloboletus limbatus (incl. Veloboletus gen. nov.)onsoil. Austria, Cortinarius glaucoelotus onsoil. Bulgaria, Suhomyces rilaensis from the gut of Bolitophagus interruptus found on a Polyporus sp. Canada, Cantharellus betularum among leaf litter of Betula, Penicillium saanichii from house dust. Chile, Circinella lampensis on soil, Exophiala embothrii from rhizosphere of Embothrium coccineum. China, Colletotrichum cycadis on leaves of Cycas revoluta. Croatia, Phialocephala melitaea on fallen branch of Pinus halepensis. Czech Republic, Geoglossum jirinae on soil, Pyrenochaetopsis rajhradensis from dead wood of Buxus sempervirens. Dominican Republic, Amanita domingensis on litter of deciduous wood, Melanoleuca dominicana on forest litter. France, Crinipellis nigrolamellata (Martinique) on leaves of Pisonia fragrans, Talaromyces pulveris from bore dust of Xestobium rufovillosum infesting floorboards. French Guiana, Hypoxylon hepaticolor on dead corticated branch. Great Britain, Inocybe ionolepis on soil. India, Cortinarius indopurpurascens among leaf litter of Quercus leucotrichophora. Iran, Pseudopyricularia javanii on infected leaves of Cyperus sp., Xenomonodictys iranica (incl. Xenomonodictys gen. nov.) on wood of Fagus orientalis. Italy, Penicillium vallebormidaense from compost. Namibia, Alternaria mirabibensis on plant litter, Curvularia moringae and Moringomyces phantasmae (incl. Moringomyces gen. nov.) on leaves and flowers of Moringa ovalifolia, Gobabebomyces vachelliae (incl. Gobabebomyces gen. nov.) on leaves of Vachellia erioloba, Preussia procaviae on dung of Procavia capensis. Pakistan, Russula shawarensis from soil on forest floor. Russia, Cyberlindnera dauci from Daucus carota. South Africa, Acremonium behniae on leaves of Behnia reticulata, Dothiora aloidendri and Hantamomyces aloidendri (incl. Hantamomyces gen. nov.) on leaves of Aloidendron dichotomum, Endoconidioma euphorbiae on leaves of Euphorbia mauritanica , Eucasphaeria proteae on leaves of Protea neriifolia , Exophiala mali from inner fruit tissue of Malus sp., Graminopassalora geissorhizae on leaves of Geissorhiza splendidissima, Neocamarosporium leipoldtiae on leaves of Leipoldtia schultzii, Neocladosporium osteospermi on leaf spots of Osteospermum moniliferum, Neometulocladosporiella seifertii on leaves of Combretum caffrum, Paramyrothecium pituitipietianum on stems of Grielum humifusum, Phytopythium paucipapillatum from roots of Vitis sp., Stemphylium carpobroti and Verrucocladosporium carpobroti on leaves of Carpobrotus quadrifolius, Suttonomyces cephalophylli on leaves of Cephalophyllum pilansii. Sweden, Coprinopsis rubra on cow dung, Elaphomyces nemoreus fromdeciduouswoodlands. Spain, Polyscytalum pini-canariensis on needles of Pinus canariensis, Pseudosubramaniomyces septatus from stream sediment, Tuber lusitanicum on soil under Quercus suber. Thailand, Tolypocladium flavonigrum on Elaphomyces sp. USA, Chaetothyrina spondiadis on fruits of Spondias mombin, Gymnascella minnisii from bat guano, Juncomyces patwiniorum on culms of Juncus effusus, Moelleriella puertoricoensis on scale insect, Neodothiora populina (incl. Neodothiora gen. nov.) on stem cankers of Populus tremuloides, Pseudogymnoascus palmeri fromcavesediment. Vietnam, Cyphellophora vietnamensis on leaf litter, Tylopilus subotsuensis on soil in montane evergreen broadleaf forest. Morphological and culture characteristics are supported by DNA barcodes.

Endophytic yeasts from internal tissues of 54 names of nuts and vegetables from 36 countries were studied. In total, 74 species of yeasts were isolated from analysed agricultural crops. The study revealed high values of occurrence and abundance of clinically significant yeasts Candida parapsilosis and Meyerozyma guilliermondii in some internal tissues that may pose a potential threat to human health, primarily for immunocompromised individuals.

Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Angola, Gnomoniopsis angolensis and Pseudopithomyces angolensis on unknown host plants. Australia, Dothiora corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora, Neoeucasphaeria eucalypti (incl. Neoeucasphaeria gen. nov.)on Eucalyptus sp., Fumagopsis stellae on Eucalyptus sp., Fusculina eucalyptorum (incl. Fusculinaceae fam. nov.) on Eucalyptus socialis, Harknessia corymbiicola on Corymbia maculata, Neocelosporium eucalypti (incl. Neocelosporium gen. nov., Neocelosporiaceae fam. nov. and Neocelosporiales ord. nov.) on Eucalyptus cyanophylla, Neophaeomoniella corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora, Neophaeomoniella eucalyptigena on Eucalyptus pilularis, Pseudoplagiostoma corymbiicola on Corymbia citriodora, Teratosphaeria gracilis on Eucalyptus gracilis, Zasmidium corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora. Brazil, Calonectria hemileiae on pustules of Hemileia vastatrix formed on leaves of Coffea arabica, Calvatia caatinguensis on soil, Cercospora solani-betacei on Solanum betaceum, Clathrus natalensis on soil, Diaporthe poincianellae on Poincianella pyramidalis, Geastrum piquiriunense on soil, Geosmithia carolliae on wing of Carollia perspicillata, Henningsia resupinata on wood, Penicillium guaibinense from soil, Periconia caespitosa from leaf litter, Pseudocercospora styracina on Styrax sp., Simplicillium filiforme as endophyte from Citrullus lanatus, Thozetella pindobacuensis on leaf litter, Xenosonderhenia coussapoae on Coussapoa floccosa., Canary Islands (Spain), Orbilia amarilla on Euphorbia canariensis. Cape Verde Islands, Xylodon jacobaeus on Eucalyptus camaldulensis. Chile, Colletotrichum arboricola on Fuchsia magellanica. Costa Rica, Lasiosphaeria miniovina ontreebranch. Ecuador, Ganoderma chocoense ontreetrunk. France, Neofitzroyomyces nerii (incl. Neofitzroyomyces gen. nov.) on Nerium oleander. Ghana, Castanediella tereticornis on Eucalyptus tereticornis, Falcocladium africanum on Eucalyptus brassiana, Rachicladosporium corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora. Hungary, Entoloma silvae-frondosae in Carpinus betulus-Pinus sylvestris mixedforest. Iran, Pseudopyricularia persiana on Cyperus sp. Italy, Inocybe roseascens onsoilinmixedforest. Laos, Ophiocordyceps houaynhangensis on Coleoptera larva. Malaysia, Monilochaetes melastomae on Melastoma sp. Mexico, Absidia terrestris fromsoil. Netherlands, Acaulium pannemaniae, Conioscypha boutwelliae, Fusicolla septimanifiniscientiae, Gibellulopsis simonii, Lasionectria hilhorstii, Lectera nordwiniana, Leptodiscella rintelii, Parasarocladium debruynii and Sarocladium dejongiae (incl. Sarocladiaceae fam. nov.) fromsoil. New Zealand, Gnomoniopsis rosae on Rosa sp. and Neodevriesia metrosideri on Metrosideros sp. Puerto Rico, Neodevriesia coccolobae on Coccoloba uvifera, Neodevriesia tabebuiae and Alfaria tabebuiae on Tabebuia chrysantha . Russia, Amanita paludosa on bogged soil in mixed deciduous forest, Entoloma tiliae in forest of Tilia × europaea, Kwoniella endophytica on Pyrus communis., South Africa, Coniella diospyri on Diospyros mespiliformis, Neomelanconiella combreti (incl. Neomelanconiellaceae fam. nov. and Neomelanconiella gen. nov.)on Combretum sp., Polyphialoseptoria natalensis on unidentified plant host, Pseudorobillarda bolusanthi on Bolusanthus speciosus, Thelonectria pelargonii on Pelargonium sp. Spain, Vermiculariopsiella lauracearum and Anungitopsis lauri on Laurus novocanariensis, Geosmithia xerotolerans from a darkened wall of a house, Pseudopenidiella gallaica on leaf litter. Thailand, Corynespora thailandica on wood, Lareunionomyces loeiensis on leaf litter, Neocochlearomyces chromolaenae (incl. Neocochlearomyces gen. nov.) on Chromolaena odorata, Neomyrmecridium septatum (incl. Neomyrmecridium gen. nov .), Pararamichloridium caricicola on Carex sp., Xenodactylaria thailandica (incl. Xenodactylariaceae fam. nov. and Xenodactylaria gen. nov.), Neomyrmecridium asiaticum and Cymostachys thailandica fromunidentifiedvine. USA, Carolinigaster bonitoi (incl. Carolinigaster gen. nov.)fromsoil, Penicillium fortuitum from house dust, Phaeotheca shathenatiana (incl. Phaeothecaceae fam. nov.) from twig and cone litter, Pythium wohlseniorum from stream water, Superstratomyces tardicrescens from human eye, Talaromyces iowaense from officeair. Vietnam, Fistulinella olivaceoalba onsoil. Morphological and culture characteristics along with DNA barcodes are provided Novel species of fungi described in this study include those from various countries as follows: Angola, Gnomoniopsis angolensis and Pseudopithomyces angolensis on unknown host plants. Australia, Dothiora corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora, Neoeucasphaeria eucalypti (incl. Neoeucasphaeria gen. nov.)on Eucalyptus sp., Fumagopsis stellae on Eucalyptus sp., Fusculina eucalyptorum (incl. Fusculinaceae fam. nov.) on Eucalyptus socialis, Harknessia corymbiicola on Corymbia maculata, Neocelosporium eucalypti (incl. Neocelosporium gen. nov., Neocelosporiaceae fam. nov. and Neocelosporiales ord. nov.) on Eucalyptus cyanophylla, Neophaeomoniella corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora, Neophaeomoniella eucalyptigena on Eucalyptus pilularis, Pseudoplagiostoma corymbiicola on Corymbia citriodora, Teratosphaeria gracilis on Eucalyptus gracilis, Zasmidium corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora. Brazil, Calonectria hemileiae on pustules of Hemileia vastatrix formed on leaves of Coffea arabica, Calvatia caatinguensis on soil, Cercospora solani-betacei on Solanum betaceum, Clathrus natalensis on soil, Diaporthe poincianellae on Poincianella pyramidalis, Geastrum piquiriunense on soil, Geosmithia carolliae on wing of Carollia perspicillata, Henningsia resupinata on wood, Penicillium guaibinense from soil, Periconia caespitosa from leaf litter, Pseudocercospora styracina on Styrax sp., Simplicillium filiforme as endophyte from Citrullus lanatus, Thozetella pindobacuensis on leaf litter, Xenosonderhenia coussapoae on Coussapoa floccosa., Canary Islands (Spain), Orbilia amarilla on Euphorbia canariensis. Cape Verde Islands, Xylodon jacobaeus on Eucalyptus camaldulensis. Chile, Colletotrichum arboricola on Fuchsia magellanica. Costa Rica, Lasiosphaeria miniovina ontreebranch. Ecuador, Ganoderma chocoense ontreetrunk. France, Neofitzroyomyces nerii (incl. Neofitzroyomyces gen. nov.) on Nerium oleander. Ghana, Castanediella tereticornis on Eucalyptus tereticornis, Falcocladium africanum on Eucalyptus brassiana, Rachicladosporium corymbiae on Corymbia citriodora. Hungary, Entoloma silvae-frondosae in Carpinus betulus-Pinus sylvestris mixedforest. Iran, Pseudopyricularia persiana on Cyperus sp. Italy, Inocybe roseascens onsoilinmixedforest. Laos, Ophiocordyceps houaynhangensis on Coleoptera larva. Malaysia, Monilochaetes melastomae on Melastoma sp. Mexico, Absidia terrestris fromsoil. Netherlands, Acaulium pannemaniae, Conioscypha boutwelliae, Fusicolla septimanifiniscientiae, Gibellulopsis simonii, Lasionectria hilhorstii, Lectera nordwiniana, Leptodiscella rintelii, Parasarocladium debruynii and Sarocladium dejongiae (incl. Sarocladiaceae fam. nov.) fromsoil. New Zealand, Gnomoniopsis rosae on Rosa sp. and Neodevriesia metrosideri on Metrosideros sp. Puerto Rico, Neodevriesia coccolobae on Coccoloba uvifera, Neodevriesia tabebuiae and Alfaria tabebuiae on Tabebuia chrysantha., Russia, Amanita paludosa on bogged soil in mixed deciduous forest, Entoloma tiliae in forest of Tilia × europaea, Kwoniella endophytica on Pyrus communis. South Africa, Coniella diospyri on Diospyros mespiliformis, Neomelanconiella combreti (incl. Neomelanconiellaceae fam. nov. and Neomelanconiella gen. nov.)on Combretum sp., Polyphialoseptoria natalensis on unidentified plant host, Pseudorobillarda bolusanthi on Bolusanthus speciosus, Thelonectria pelargonii on Pelargonium sp. Spain, Vermiculariopsiella lauracearum and Anungitopsis lauri on Laurus novocanariensis, Geosmithia xerotolerans from a darkened wall of a house, Pseudopenidiella gallaica on leaf litter. Thailand, Corynespora thailandica on wood, Lareunionomyces loeiensis on leaf litter, Neocochlearomyces chromolaenae (incl. Neocochlearomyces gen. nov.) on Chromolaena odorata, Neomyrmecridium septatum (incl. Neomyrmecridium gen. nov .), Pararamichloridium caricicola on Carex sp., Xenodactylaria thailandica (incl. Xenodactylariaceae fam. nov. and Xenodactylaria gen. nov.), Neomyrmecridium asiaticum and Cymostachys thailandica fromunidentifiedvine. USA, Carolinigaster bonitoi (incl. Carolinigaster gen. nov.)fromsoil, Penicillium fortuitum from house dust, Phaeotheca shathenatiana (incl. Phaeothecaceae fam. nov.) from twig and cone litter, Pythium wohlseniorum from stream water, Superstratomyces tardicrescens from human eye, Talaromyces iowaense from officeair. Vietnam, Fistulinella olivaceoalba onsoil. Morphological and culture characteristics along with DNA barcodes are provided., Tatiana M. Bulyonkova and colleagues are grateful to Dr Rodham Tulloss for his patient guidance and help, and to Dr Torbjørn Borgen Lindhardt for his invaluable advice. Thays G.L. Oliveira, Maria T.C. Felipe, Jadson D.P. Bezerra and Oliane M. C. Magalhães acknowledge financial support and/or scholarships from the CAPES (Finance Code 001), CNPq and FACEPE. Aline O.B. da Cunha, Alexandre R. Machado, Eder Barbier, Enrico Bernard and Cristina M. Souza-Motta acknowledge financial support and/or scholarships from the CAPES (Finance Code 001), CNPq, FACEPE, CECAV and ICMBio from Brazil. Rejane M.F. da Silva and colleagues express their gratitude to the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) for a scholarship to Rejane M.F. da Silva and to the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) for a research fellowships and/or financial support to Gladstone A. da Silva, Cristina M. Souza-Motta, José L. Bezerra and Rafael J.V. de Oliveira (Processes 458622/2014-1 and 312186/2016-9). Olinto L. Pereira, Vanessa P. Abreu, Jackeline P. Andrade and colleagues would like to thank the CNPq, CAPES and FAPEMIG for financial support. The study of Olga V. Morozova was carried out within the framework of a research project of the Komarov Botanical Institute RAS ‘Herbarium funds of the BIN RAS’ (АААА-А18-118022090078-2) with the support of the molecular work by the Russian Foundation for the Basic Research (project no. 15-29-02622). Anna M. Glushakova and Aleksey V. Kachalkin were supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR), project no. 16-04-00624a. Janet Jennifer Luangsa-ard and colleagues were supported by ‘The Promotion Project on Science, Technology and Innovation Collaboration with ASEAN Member Countries under the Office of International Cooperation, MOSTThailand’. They would also like to thank Ms Duangkaew Chongkachornphong, Ms Papawee Nupason (International Cooperation Section, BIOTEC) and Ms Bakeo Souvannalath (Director of Biotechnology Division, Biotechnology and Ecology Institute, BEI) for their kind cooperation. Javier Fernández-López and colleagues are grateful to Marian Glenn for checking the text, and were supported by DGICT projects CGL2012-35559 and CGL2015-67459-P., Javier Fernández-López was also supported by Predoctoral Grants (BES- 2013-066429) from the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Spain). Maria E. Ordoñez and colleagues acknowledge Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador for financial support for project M13415. Taimy Cantillo is thankful to PEC-PG/CAPES for the PhD grant (proc. 12636134/2014) (Finance Code 001) and to the International Association for Plant Taxonomy (IAPT) for the Research Grant. Luis F.P. Gusmão is grateful to CNPq for Grant support (Proc. 303062/2014-2). Hugo Madrid was partially funded by Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (CONICYT), Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico (FONDECYT), Chile, project no. 11140562. Tor Erik Brandrud, Bálint Dima, Machiel E. Noordeloos and Egil Bendiksen thank the financial support of the Norwegian Taxonomy Initiative, with funding from the Norwegian Biodiversity Information Centre (NBIC), The Austrian Entoloma material (by Irmgard Krisai-Greilhuber) was sequenced within ABOL, subproject HRSFM University of Vienna, supported by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research. Adriene M. Soares and colleagues would like to thank the Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da Biodiversidade (ICMBio) and the Instituto Brasileiro de Meio Ambiente (IBAMA) for support during field trips and R.L.M. Alvarenga for the figures. They also acknowledge CAPES for the Ph.D. scholarship of Adriene M. Soares, and CNPq (307601/2015-3), CAPES (CAPES-SIU 008/13), and FACEPE (APQ-0375-2.03/15) for financial support. Angus J. Carnegie acknowledges support from the Forestry Corporation of NSW, and David Sargeant for assistance with site photos. Adel Pordel and colleagues thank the University of Tehran for financial support. Luis Quijada acknowledges support from ‘Fundación Ramón Areces’. Robert W. Barreto and colleagues thank the World Coffee Research/Texas Agrilife for financial support, as well as the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq), the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES). Sara Salcedo-Sarmiento was supported by the ‘Programa de Estudante-Convênio de Pós-Graduação’ (PEC-PG) from CAPES. The research of Cobus M. Visagie and Keith A. Seifert was supported by grants from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Program on the Microbiology of the Built Environment. Blaise A. Darvaux acknowledges Keith A. Seifert for help with identification, Nicholas Mauriello for validating the Latin name, Mauricia Lawrence and Meagan Tillotson for help with material preparation. We are grateful to Gavin Phillips, Seed Bank Officer, Australian Botanic Garden, Mt Annan for field assistance and identification of plant species collected in New South Wales, Australia. Collection of specimens from Mungo National Park was supported by the ABRS Bush Blitz program, a partnership between the Australian Government, BHP and Earthwatch Australia. The National Geographic Okavango Wilderness Project is acknowledged for assistance and funding to J. Roux for material collected in Angola.

Yeast abundance and species diversity on the surface and in inner tissues of Malus domestica and Pyrus communis fruits under high anthropogenic impact in the city of Moscow (Russia) were studied. Results demonstrated that abundance of epiphytic yeasts on the fruits increased gradually, reaching the maximum of 3.2 × 10⁴ CFU/g on mature fruits. During summer, abundance of endophytes did not change significantly (variation near 2.5 × 10³ CFU/g) until complete maturation, while in September their numbers increased to 104 CFU/g. Basidiomycetous yeasts (Filobasidium wieringae, F. magnum, Rhodotorula glutinis, and Rhodosporidiobolus colostri) predominated on the fruit surface. Ascomycetous species were the most diverse group inside the fruits, which quantitatively increased through maturation. It was found that the share of opportunistic species Candida parapsilosis in internal tissues was significant during the entire period of fruit formation and development under anthropogenic impact in the city. Specific properties of epiphytic and endophytic yeast communities developing in natural ecological niches under synanthropic conditions and anthropogenic impact are discussed.

High performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) was applied to the comprehensive analysis of the ability of yeast strains to synthesize a plant hormone indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). A total of 124 strains (37 species) of yeasts isolated from various regions and substrates were studied. Testing of IAA production showed that 92% strains were capable of IAA synthesis. The results indicated that, in general, ascomycetous yeasts were more active auxin producers than basidiomycetous ones. Geographically, strains from tropical regions were the most active IAA producers. Analysis of the substrate variability of the strains showed higher auxin production (on average) by the yeasts isolated from plants compared to the soil isolates, indicating a specific regulatory role of the plant yeast population.

The annual dynamics of yeast communities were studied in the soddy-podzolic soil under the thickets of Aster x salignus Willd., one of the widespread invasive plant species in central Russia. Yeast groups in the soils under continuous aster thickets were found to differ greatly from the yeast communities in the soils under the adjacent indigenous meadow vegetation. In both biotopes the same species (Candida vartiovaarae, Candida sake, and Cryptococcus terreus) are dominants. However, in the soils under indigenous grasses, eurybiontic yeasts Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, which almost never occur in the soil under aster, are widespread. In the soil under aster, the shares of other typical epiphytic and pedobiontic yeast fungi (ascomycetic species Wickerhamomyces aniomalus, Barnettozyma californica and basidiomycetic species Cystofilobasidium macerans, Guehomyces pullulans) significantly increase. Thus, the invasion of Aster x salignus has a clear effect on soil yeast complexes reducing their taxonomic and ecological diversity.

Yeast abundance and species diversity in the latex of rubber tree Hevea brasiliensis (Willd. ex Juss.) Mull. Arg., on its green leaves, and in soil below the plant were studied. The yeasts present in the fresh latex in numbers of up to 5.5 log(CFU/g) were almost exclusively represented by the species Candida heveicola. This species was previously isolated from Hevea latex in China. In the course of natural modification of the latex (turned from liquid to solid form), yeast diversity increased, while yeast abundance decreased. The yeasts in thickened and solidified latex were represented by typical epiphytic and ubiquitous species: Kodamea ohmeri, Debaryomyces hansenii, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, and synanthropic species Candida parapsilosis and Cutaneotrichosporon arboriformis. The role of yeasts in latex modification at the initial stages of succession and their probable role in development of antifungal activity in the latex are discussed.

The ability of model animal species, such as Drosophila melanogaster, to adapt quickly to various adverse conditions has been shown in many experimental evolution studies. It is usually assumed by default that such adaptation is due to changes in the gene pool of the studied population of macroorganisms. At the same time, it is known that microbiome can influence biological processes in macroorganisms. In order to assess the possible impact of microbiome on adaptation, we performed an evolutionary experiment in which some D. melanogaster lines were reared on a food substrate with high NaCl concentration while the others were reared on the standard (favourable) substrate. We evaluated the reproductive efficiency of experimental lines on the high salt substrate three years after the experiment started. Our tests confirmed that the lines reared on the salty substrate became more tolerant to high NaCl concentration. Moreover, we found that pre-inoculation of the high salt medium with homogenized salt-tolerant flies tended to improve reproductive efficiency of naive flies on this medium (compared to pre-inoculation with homogenized control flies). The analysis of yeast microbiome in fly homogenates revealed significant differences in number and species richness of yeasts between salt-tolerant and control lines. We also found that some individual yeast lines extracted from the salt-tolerant flies improved reproductive efficiency of naive flies on salty substrate (compared to baker’s yeast and no yeast controls), whereas the effect of the yeast lines extracted from the control flies tended to be smaller. The yeast Starmerella bacillaris extracted from the salt-tolerant flies showed the strongest positive effect. This yeast is abundant in all salt-tolerant lines, and very rare or absent in all control lines. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that some components of the yeast microbiome of D. melanogaster contribute to to flies’ tolerance to food substrate with high NaCl concentration.

Complex of microfungi colonizing mineral building materials, i.e. limestone and plaster, in interiors of cultural heritage was characterized. Wide-scale investigation was carried out with fourteen objects studied. We have revealed a specific culturable community. We have analyzed role of obtained microfungi in biodeterioraton process on the basis of our tests (pH and water activity preferences, ability to solubilize CaCO3) and literature data (substrate preferences and enzyme activities). The species most actively developing in mineral materials in indoor environments were Acremonium charticola, Acremonium furcatum, Lecanicillium sp., Parengyodontium album, Purpureocillium lilacinum and Sarocladium kiliense. Considering this fact and their ability to develop successfully at extremely wide range of pH values from slightly acidic to alkaline ones and their high enzymatic activities we conclude that the listed species are of high interest in seeking the cause of biodeterioration. These species can actively develop in materials penetrating for years deep into the substrates and causing their deterioration in conditions of considerably heightened moisture content. In this group, A. charticola and Lecanicillium sp. were able to solubilize CaCO3.

Yeast abundance and species diversity in the colonies of Formica aquilonia ants in birch-pine forbs forest, Novosibirsk oblast, Russia, was studied. The average yeast number in the anthill material was 10³-10⁴CFU/g, reaching 10⁵ CFU/g in the hatching chambers. Typical litter species (Trichosporon monilfiforme and Cystofilobasidium capitatum) were predominant in soil and litter around the anthills. Apart from these species, ascomycete species of the family Debaryomycetaceae, Debaryomyces hansenii and Schwanniomyces vanrijiae, were predominant in the anthill material. Yeast population of the ants consisted exclusively of the members of these two species. Thus, highly specific yeast communities formed in the colonies of Formica aquilonia ants differ from the communities of surrounding soil. These differences are an instance of environment-forming activity of the ants.

Yeast abundance and diversity in a mixed forest sod-podzol soil under Impatiens parviflora DC plants was studied in comparison with unimpaired aboriginal herbaceous plants typical of the Mid-Russian secondary, after-forest meadow. The study was carried out throughout the vegetation period. Standard microbiological plating techniques revealed 36 yeast species. Typical pedobiotic (Cryptococcus podzolicus, Wickerhamomyces anomalus) and eurybiotic yeast species (Rhodotorula mucilaginosa) predominated in both biotopes. The relative abundance of the autochthonous soil yeast species Cryptococcus podzolicus was higher in the soil under aboriginal herbs than under Impatiens parviflora. Sites with aboriginal vegetation were also characterized by high abundance of the pedogamous species Schwanniomyces castelli and Torulaspora delbrueckii. The share of yeastlike Trichosporon fungi with high hydrolytic activity was considerably higher under adventitious plants Impatiens parviflora, as well as in the previously studied soil under Heracleum sosnowskyi.

Long-term studies of yeast species diversity in the vineyards of the Republic of Dagestan using various isolation techniques and various substrates in the vertical tier dynamics revealed 38 species. The most diverse species complex including -80% of the isolated species was formed on the berries. A list of 160 yeast species isolated from grapes, spontaneously fermented fresh juice, and other vineyard substrates was compiled using the results of the present work and the literature data on yeast occurrence. Analysis of generalized data revealed considerable similarity in the taxonomic composition of yeasts from different countries and continents and made it possible to shift from the genus to the species characterization of the grape-associated yeast community.

Long-term microbiological investigation of the pollen of silver birch (Betula pendula) in the Moscow and Moscow oblast areas revealed that almost one-third of the analyzed samples contained the fungus identified by morphological, cultural, and molecular genetic techniques as Quambalaria cyanescens (de Hoog & G.A. de Vries) Z.W. de Beer, Begerow & R. Bauer. This species was previously known mostly as a symbiont of tropical plants of the genera Eucalyptus and Corymbia and have not been isolated in Russia. We revealed a close association between Quambalaria cyanescens and silver birch. The micromycete was regularly detected in pollen samples, as well as on the inside and outside of the aments, and on the surface of leaves and branches. It was never isolated from other plant species in the investigated area. The data on the morphological and cultural characteristics of the fungus, its cell ultrastructure, and occurrence are presented, as well as the phylogenetic analysis of the isolated strains.

The yeast communities of tropical soils of two biotopes in monsoon tropical forest in the specially protected natural territories of the National Park Cát Tiên were studied. It was possible to establish that the distribution of yeasts in the profile of studied soils differed markedly. Of particular interest was the isolation from the tropical soils of Vietnam the pedobiont yeast species Saitozyma podzolica, which is regularly found in soils of temperate latitudes of Russia and other regions.

Dynamics of abundance and diversity of epiphytic yeasts in entomophilic flowers of 28 species of meadow, forest, and cultivated plants throughout their blooming period was determined. The number of yeasts in the flowers was shown to increase gradually during the vegetation period, and reached the maximum during summer-autumn. The total abundance and ratio of the yeast species in the flowers depended entirely on the blooming time, rather than on the taxonomic position of the plants. Three stages of development of the entomophilic yeast complexes during the vegetation period may be discerned: predominance of eurybiont nonspecific species (Cryptococcus albidus, Debaryomyces hansenii) in spring, mass development of specific nectar-associated yeasts (Metschnikowia reukaufii) in summer, and their substitution by widespread epiphytic species (Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, Cryptococcus magnus) in autumn.

The fungus Fusarium sp. isolated from saline soil was identified by the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 and the D1/D2 domains of LSU RNA as a member of the Fusarium incarnatum-equiseti species group. Its growth patterns on media with different NaCl concentrations indicated its adaptation as halotolerance. The mechanisms of halotolerance included accumulation of arabitol (a five-atom noncyclic polyol), a decreased sterols/phospholipids ratio, elevated level of phosphatidic acids in the phospholipids, and increased unsaturation of phospholipids, which was especially pronounced in the idiophase. The mechanisms of halotolerance of the mycelial fungus Fusarium sp. are discussed in comparison with yeasts and yeastlike fungi.

A fungus was isolated from aviation fuel and identified as Monascus floridanus P.F. Cannon & E.L. Barnard (FR827895) according to its morphological and genetic properties. The isolate has some properties that are unusual for the type strain, including a prominent stripe on one of the sides of the ascospores and occurrence, along with the known Basipetospora-type thallic conidia, of the phialophora-like spore formation. The isolated strain Monascus floridanus, like the known kerosene fungus Hormoconis resinae (Lindau) Arx & G.A. de Vries, is capable of active growth in aviation fuel.