Diversity and Systematics of Plant-Associated Fungi
A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2026 | Viewed by 68
Special Issue Editors
Interests: taxonomy; molecular systematics; fungal diversity
Interests: taxonomy; molecular systematics; fungal diversity
Interests: taxonomy; molecular systematics; fungal molecular genetics; molecular genetics of oomycetes
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Fungi have successfully established themselves across seemingly every possible niche, substrate, and biome. They are in the soil and the air, in lakes, rivers, and seas, on and within plants and animals, in food and clothing, and in the human body. They play important roles in biogeochemical cycling, interspecies interactions, food production, and drug bioprocessing, and they play less heroic roles as difficult-to-treat human infections and devastating plant pathogens. Given the ubiquitous nature of fungi, additional taxonomic and ecological knowledge are prerequisites to understanding fungal biology and their environmental significance.
Plant-associated fungi encompass endophytic, epiphytic, phytopathogenic, saprobic, and rhizosphere-associated fungi. For example, Colletotrichum is a genus of major plant pathogens causing anthracnose diseases in many plant crops worldwide. The lifestyles of Colletotrichum species can be broadly categorized as necrotrophic, hemibiotrophic, latent, or quiescent and endophytic. Fusarium is a common plant pathogen that often enters plants through the roots, where it disrupts water and nutrient transport systems, leading to the characteristic wilting and necrosis of plant tissues. Trichoderma fulfills multiple ecological functions in the plant rhizosphere, and several Trichoderma species can promote plant growth in natural and agricultural systems.
This Special Issue will provide an opportunity to highlight new research on the diversity and systematics of plant-associated fungi, and studies in this area will help us to learn more about these fungi.
Dr. Jiwen Xia
Dr. Jian Ma
Prof. Dr. Xiuguo Zhang
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- fungi diversity
- systematics
- plant-associated fungi
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