Pisolithus albus fruiting body (left), and found colonizing the root tips of Eucalyptus grandis (top right). (bottom right) Transverse cross section of a colonized E. grandis root with P. albus hyphae false colored in green. Photo credits: Kerry Keniry, Krista Plett and Jonathan Plett.

This genome was sequenced as part of the JGI CSP1953 within the framework of the Mycorrhizal Genomes Initiative, which seeks to densely sample members of a diverse lineage of ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi to examine functional diversity of ECM fungi with a shared evolutionary history.

Pisolithus albus:

The mutualistic ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungal genus Pisolithus colonizes the roots of trees in forests around the world and are inoculated on bioenergy crops such as Eucalyptus sp. and Pinus sp. due to their role in promoting plant health and productivity under different environmental constraints. Made up of >16 cryptic species, members of the Pisolithus genus are found in environments that vary broadly with regard to temperature, nutrient levels and heavy metal concentrations. Pisolithus albus isolate SI-12 was originally isolated from a sandy, disturbed soil in Sussex Inlet, New South Wales, Australia and has been used extensively in recent years as a model system to understand the molecular, metabolic and physiological controls of ectomycorrhizal colonization of eucalypt hosts.

Researchers who wish to publish analyses using data from unpublished CSP genomes are respectfully required to contact the PI (Dr. Jonathan Plett) and JGI to avoid potential conflicts on data use and coordinate other publications with the CSP master paper(s).