Thermoascus

Thermoascus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Fungi
Division: Ascomycota
Class: Eurotiomycetes
Order: Eurotiales
Family: Thermoascaceae
Genus: Thermoascus
Bainier (1907)
Type species
Thermoascus aurantiacus
Miehe (1907)
Species

T. aegyptiacus
T. aurantiacus
T. crustaceus
T. taitungiacus
T. thermophilus
T. verrucosus
T. yaguchii

Thermoascus is a genus of soil fungi in the family Trichocomaceae. Species in the genus are characterized by the production of heat-resistant ascospores. Thermoascus was circumscribed by German botanist Hugo Miehe in 1907.[1]

The type species, Thermoascus aurantiacus, is of research interest because it secretes heat-resistant hydrolase enzymes that could possibly be used in biotechnological applications, such as the conversion of biomass to biofuels.[2] Genetic tools have been developed to genetically edit Thermoascus aurantiacus, such as an Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation protocol and a CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing system, which have been used to overexpress genes that correspond to production of enzymes that break down plant matter and inactivate genes.[3]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Miehe 1907 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference McClendon 2012 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Gabriel R, Prinz J, Jecmenica M, Romero-Vazquez C, Chou P, Harth S, et al. (2020-10-10). "Development of genetic tools for the thermophilic filamentous fungus Thermoascus aurantiacus". Biotechnology for Biofuels. 13 (1): 167. doi:10.1186/s13068-020-01804-x. PMC 7547499. PMID 33062053.