Beauveria

Taxobox
name = "Beauveria"


image_width = 200px
image_caption = "B. bassiana" on a maggot
regnum = Fungi
phylum = Ascomycota
classis = Sordariomycetes
ordo = Hypocreales
familia = Clavicipitaceae
genus = "Beauveria"
genus_authority = Vuill. 1912
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision ="Beauveria bassiana" (type species)
"Beauveria brongniartii"
"Beauveria felina"
and others

"Beauveria" is a genus of asexually-reproducing fungi allied with the ascomycete family Clavicipitaceae. Its several species are typically insect pathogens. The sexual states (teleomorphs) of "Beauveria" species, where known, are species of "Cordyceps".

"Beauveria" species are white molds. They form white, unicellular conidia that are typically hydrophobic and very small. The conidia are formed holoblastically from basally inflated conidiogenous cells. After conidium production, the conidiogenous cell elongates before producing another conidium atop a small denticle. The result is the formation of a distinctive, slender, zig-zag rachis. Colonies of "Beauveria" species are typically white or off-white on artificial culture media.

Species of "Tritirachium" resemble "Beauveria" species in having a zig-zag conidiogenous cells, but differ in lacking conspicuous denticles and in producing yellow-brown to purple colonies.

"Beauveria" species are commonly found associated with insects or habitats supporting insects, including soil and private dwellings. Beauveria bassiana, the most widely known member of this genus, has been developed as a biological control for various insect pests.

References

*Hoog, G. S. d. 1972. The genera "Beauveria", "Isaria", "Tritirachium", and "Acrodontium" gen. nov. Studies in Mycology 1:1-41.
*Shimazu, M., W. Mitsuhashi, and H. Hashimoto. 1988. Cordyceps brongniartii sp. nov., the teleomorph of "Beauveria brongniartii". Transactions of the Mycological Society of Japan 29:323-330.
*Brady, B. L. K. 1979. "Beauveria bassiana". CMI Descript. Pathog. Fungi Bact. 602:1-2.
*Li, Z., C. Li, B. Huang, and M. Fan. 2001. Discovery and demonstration of the teleomorph of "Beauveria bassiana" (Bals.) Vuill., an important entomogenous fungus. Chinese Science Bulletin 46:751-753.
*Rehner, S. A., and E. Buckley. 2005. A Beauveria phylogeny inferred from nuclear ITS and EF1-{alpha} sequences: evidence for cryptic diversification and links to "Cordyceps" teleomorphs. Mycologia 97:84-98.