Morphological and molecular characterization of species of Leptolegniaceae and Saprolegniaceae (Oomycota) from the Atlantic RainForest areas of São Paulo State

Abstract

Saprolegniaceae sensu lato was divided by Dick et al. (1999 ), considering morphological and molecular studies, in two families, Saprolegniaceae and Leptolegniaceae, with the transfer of the genera Aphanomyces, Leptolegnia and Plectospira for this last. These families are composed by saprobes and parasites species which are normally present in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, where play many important ecological functions. However, are little studied and need a deeper knowledge for understanding of the phylogenetic relationships among the genera. In view of this, this project aims to morphological and molecular characterization of isolates of the Atlantic Forest of São Paulo State. For this purpose, specimens belonging to 20 species recently collected and identified of the "Parque Estadual da Ilha do Cardoso (PEIC), Cananéia, São Paulo State will be used, and 10 of the Culture Collection of Algae, Fungi and Cyanobacteria of the Institute of Botany ( CCIBt ) from other preserved areas of the Atlantic RainForest . All species will be identified on morphological and molecular terms, as well as, documented through photographs for the provision of images in different media. The obtained sequences will be available in GenBank and will be used for phylogenetic analysis.