XVI International Botanical Congess

The phylogenetic tree based on 18S rDNA sequence shows ascomycota is divided into three major lineages. The archiascomycete-lineage diverged first, whereas the remaining lineages hemiascomycete (ascomycetous yeast) and euascomycete (filamentous ascomycete) evolved more recently. In archiascomycte, either Taphrina or Protomyces forms a monophyletic lineage, with each receiving > 90% bootstrap support. In addition, these two genera are most closely related each other and form a monophyletic group. Interestingly, as far as we analyzed, all of Protomyces have group I intron(s) within 18S rDNA, however, none of Taphrina. The inserted sites and structures of the Protomyces introns reflect the species diversification. We would like to talk about group I introns and evolution of Protomyces.