Unravelling the hidden diversity of cave mycobiota in Thailand’s Satun Geopark
Issued Date
2023-12-01
Resource Type
eISSN
20452322
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85175823365
Journal Title
Scientific Reports
Volume
13
Issue
1
Rights Holder(s)
SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Scientific Reports Vol.13 No.1 (2023)
Suggested Citation
Suetrong S., Preedanon S., Kobmoo N., Srihom C., Somrithipol S., Saengkaewsuk S., Srikitikulchai P., Klaysuban A., Nuankaew S., Chuaseeharonnachai C., Chainuwong B., Muangsong C., Malimart K., Rungjindamai N., Siripornpibul C., Chareonkunnatum U., Ploydam B., Thungprue N., Tongsima S., Zhang Z.F., Cai L., Boonyuen N. Unravelling the hidden diversity of cave mycobiota in Thailand’s Satun Geopark. Scientific Reports Vol.13 No.1 (2023). doi:10.1038/s41598-023-43316-2 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/91035
Title
Unravelling the hidden diversity of cave mycobiota in Thailand’s Satun Geopark
Author(s)
Author's Affiliation
Other Contributor(s)
Abstract
Karst caves are distinctive ecosystems that have limited nutrients, darkness, low to moderate temperatures, and high moisture levels, which allow for a diverse range of fungal communities to thrive. Despite their significance, little is understood about the fungi found in karst caves in Thailand. In 2019, we studied the cultured mycobiota from five substrate types (air, water, rock, soil/sediment, and organic debris) in two karst caves (Le Stegodon and Phu Pha Phet Caves) of the Satun UNESCO Global Geopark, southern Thailand. A cumulative count of 829 distinct fungal morphological types was identified, encompassing 319 fungal culturable were observed. Based on preliminary analyses of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequence using BLAST searches, the most common phylum among the fungal morphotypes was Ascomycota, harboring 282 species in 91 genera, 93.4% of which were distributed in the classes Eurotiomycetes, Sordariomycetes, and Dothideomycetes. The most common fungal genera identified in the two karst caves were Aspergillus, Penicillium, Cladosporium, Talaromyces, Xylaria, and Trichoderma, with 45, 41, 24, 14, 14, and 6 species identified, respectively. Discovering fungi in Thai karst caves highlights the extensive fungal diversity in the Satun UNESCO Global Geopark, implying undiscovered species, and emphasizing the need for comprehensive investigations in other unexplored Thai karst caves.