DIFFERENTIATION OF OPHIOSTOMA-PICEAE AND OPHIOSTOMA-QUERCUS BY MORPHOLOGY AND RAPD ANALYSIS

Ophiostoma piceae (Munch) H. and G. Sydow was found to comprise two distinct: species by means of morphological investigation on synnematal size as well as by RAPD technique for genomic analysis. The two species are separated undoubtedly by the means of morphological investigations on synnematal size, the onset of a respective yeast stage, and genomic analysis by the PCR based RAPD technique. Different mean values of synnematal size were corroborated statistically by the Kolmogorov - Smirnov Test. RAPD analysis is ensured by phylogenetic computation of the discrete state matrix arising from the arbitrary PCR fragment patterns. The two Ophiostoma species separated harbour isolates predominantly grown on spruce on the one hand (O. piceae) and gathered isolates from oak and probably other hardwoods on the other hand (O. quercus). For the latter species the name O. quercus (Georgev.) Nannf. must be reinstated.