| Metarhizium | |
|---|---|
| Cockroach killed by Metarhizium anisopliae | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Subkingdom: | Dikarya |
| Phylum: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Sordariomycetes |
| Order: | Hypocreales |
| Family: | Clavicipitaceae |
| Genus: | Metarhizium Sorokīn |
| Type species | |
| Metarhizium anisopliae (Metschn.) Sorokīn |
|
Metarhizium is a genus of entomopathogenic fungi in the Clavicipitaceae family. With the advent of genetic profiling, it has now become possible to place these fungi in proper taxa. Most turn out to be the asexual forms (anamorphs) of fungi in the phylum Ascomycota.
Nine distinct species have now been assigned to the well-known Metarhizium anisopliae[1]:
Species long recognised as distinct:
The teleomorphs of Metarhizium species appear to be members of the genus Metacordyceps[2]. Metacordyceps taii (as Cordyceps taii) has been described as the teleomorph of Metarhizium taii[3] and was later synonymised with M. anisopliae var. anisopliae[4], but it is now described as a synonym of M. guizhouense.
It is not yet clear whether the other varieties of M. anisopliae have their own teleomorphs. It is, however, possible that some, if not most, strains of M. anisopliae have lost the capability of reproducing sexually[5].
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