Ergosterol biosynthesis in novel melanized fungi from hypersaline environments

Ergosterol biosynthesis in novel melanized fungi from hypersaline environments.

Halotolerant and halophilic melanized fungi were recently described in hypersaline waters. A close study of the sterol composition of such fungi, namely Hortaea werneckii, Alternaria alternata, Cladosporium sphaerospermum, Cladosporium sp., and Aureobasidium pullulans revealed the dominance of ergosterol and the presence of 29 intermediates of its biosynthesis pathway. The presence or absence o...

Melanized halophilic fungi are eukaryotic members of microbial communities in hypersaline waters of solar salterns

Until recently, it was believed that microbial communities at high salinities are dominated exclusively by Archaea and Bacteria and one eukaryotic species, the alga Dunaliella salina. Recently, it became evident that melanized fungi, so far described only in the crystallization pond of Adriatic salterns within the season of salt production, can be considered as a new group of eukaryotic halophi...

Characterization of fungi from hypersaline environments of solar salterns using morphological and molecular techniques.

The Cabo Rojo Solar Salterns located on the southwest coast of Puerto Rico are composed of two main ecosystems (i.e., salt ponds and microbial mats). Even though these locations are characterized by high solar radiation (mean light intensity of 39 mol photons m-2d-1) they harbour a diverse microscopic life. We used morphological and molecular techniques to identify a series of halotolerant fung...

Characterization of New Viruses from Hypersaline Environments

Diversity of halophilic archaea from six hypersaline environments in Turkey.

The diversity of archaeal strains from six hypersaline environments in Turkey was analyzed by comparing their phenotypic characteristics and 16S rDNA sequences. Thirty-three isolates were characterized in terms of their phenotypic properties including morphological and biochemical characteristics, susceptibility to different antibiotics, and total lipid and plasmid contents, and finally compare...