FIRST PHYLOGENETIC AND SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPIC (SEM) ANALYSIS OF LYCOPERDON PERLATUM (LYCOPERDACEAE, AGARICALES) FROM PAKISTAN - Aleena Iqbal; Hira Ali; Samina Sarwar; Irmgard Krisai-Greilhuber; Nousheen Yousaf; Muhammad Fiaz; Muhammad Hanif; Abdul Majid (Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences, 2026)
Fungi of the family Lycoperdaceae are an important component of forests ecosystem of both ecological and economic value. Among the best known is the puffball fungus, Lycoperdon perlatum, which exhibits a wide range of phenotypic variation and has a widespread distribution. In the current study, specimens of L. perlatum were collected from the soil around the rhizospheric zone of pine trees in District Mansehra, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. These samples were examined using both traditional morphological approaches and modern molecular genetic techniques, combining both traditional and advanced methods for a more comprehensive analysis. Basidiomata were initially off-white to yellow, after maturity olivaceous-brown and pear-shaped. There are whitish warts on the exoperidium which can be easily rubbed off, leaving a characteristic areolate pattern of small granules on the underlying endoperidium. The identification of species was confirmed using DNA sequencing alongside detailed microscopic examination of the basidiomata, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of spores, and phylogenetic analysis. This combined approach provided a thorough description of L. perlatum and confirmed its taxonomic placement. These findings add to the growing documentation of macrofungal diversity in Pakistan and emphasize the important ecological roles of puffball fungi in supporting forest health and nutrient cycling.
Keywords: journal article; Agaricales; Basidiomycota; ITS; Phylogeny; Soil Fungi; Taxonomy