A. Lentinula edodes (cultivar; Image Credit: D. Hibbett).
B. Lentinula novae-zealandiae (New Zealand; reproduced from Kew Bulletin 19: plate 9 [1964], with the permission of the Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew).
C. Lentinula raphanica (Brazil; Image Credit: N. Ishikawa).
D. Lentinula boryana (Mexico; Image Credit: A. Rockefeller, from mushroomobserver.org used under Creative Commons Non-commercial licence).
E. Lentinula aciculospora (Costa Rica; Image Credit: J.L. Mata & R.H. Petersen, from mycoportal.org used under Creative Commons CC0 1.0).

This genome was produced as part of the Lentinula Genome Project (LGP), with support of the JGI Community Science Program. The LGP is being conducted by an international consortium of seven Co-PIs and 17 Collaborators, and will eventually produce ca. 30 genome sequences derived from wild strains, as well as QTL (quantitative trait locus) and GWAS (genome-wide association study) data from cultivars. A “master” genome publication will be prepared when all 30 genomes are complete. In the interim, researchers who wish to use unpublished data from LGP genomes are respectfully asked to contact the PI and JGI to avoid conflicts on data use and to coordinate other publications with the LGP master paper(s). The LGP welcomes additional partners.

Lentinula is a genus of white rot fungi that is best known for the edible mushroom Lentinula edodes, also called shiitake (Japanese, “oak mushroom”, しいたけ), xiang-gu (Chinese, “fragrant mushroom”, 香菇), or pyogo (Korean, 표고). Historical records suggest that L. edodes was first cultivated in China about 1000 years ago, making it one of the first mushroom species to be domesticated. Today, shiitake is cultivated worldwide, and it is second only to the button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus, in terms of production volume. Shiitake breeders have developed strains that not only produce high yields, but that have enhanced growth rates and specific temperature optima for fruiting. QTL and GWAS studies that will be conducted in the LGP using cultivars will provide insight into the mechanistic bases of differences in growth performance, which is of relevance to optimizing industrial fungal bioconversions. Eight species of Lentinula are currently recognized in the taxonomic literature (five are illustrated in the figure), but two are poorly documented. Molecular data (ITS and tef1 sequences) from six of the named species resolve approximately ten distinct lineages that are widely distributed in Asia-Australasia and South, Central and North America. Sampling of wild strains in the LGP is based on lineages identified with ITS and tef1 data, with the goal of maximizing taxonomic and geographic diversity. Comparative genomic data generated in this project will address species limits in Lentinula and allow us to test historical biogeographic scenarios that explain its current disjunct distribution.