AUTHOR=Wu Fang , Li Shou-Jian , Dong Cai-Hong , Dai Yu-Cheng , Papp Viktor 

TITLE=The Genus Pachyma (Syn. Wolfiporia) Reinstated and Species Clarification of the Cultivated Medicinal Mushroom “Fuling” in China

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=11

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2020.590788

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2020.590788

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>The fungus “Fuling” has been used in Chinese traditional medicine for more than 2000 years, and its sclerotia have a wide range of biological activities including antitumour, immunomodulation, anti-inflammation, antioxidation, anti-aging etc. This prized medicinal mushroom also known as “Hoelen” is resurrected from a piece of pre-Linnean scientific literature. Fries treated it as <italic>Pachyma hoelen</italic> Fr. and mentioned that it was cultivated on pine trees in China. However, this name had been almost forgotten, and <italic>Poria cocos</italic> (syn. <italic>Wolfiporia cocos</italic>), originally described from North America, and known as “Tuckahoe” has been applied to “Fuling” in most publications. Although Merrill mentioned a 100 years ago that Asian <italic>Pachyma hoelen</italic> and North American <italic>P. cocos</italic> are similar but different, no comprehensive taxonomical studies have been carried out on the East Asian <italic>Pachyma hoelen</italic> and its related species. Based on phylogenetic analyses and morphological examination on both the sclerotia and the basidiocarps which are very seldomly developed, the East Asian samples of <italic>Pachyma hoelen</italic> including sclerotia, commercial strains for cultivation and fruiting bodies, nested in a strongly supported, homogeneous lineage which clearly separated from the lineages of North American <italic>Wolfiporia cocos</italic> and other species. So we confirm that the widely cultivated “Fuling” <italic>Pachyma hoelen</italic> in East Asia is not conspecific with the North American <italic>Wolfiporia cocos</italic>. Based on the changes in Art. 59 of the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants, the generic name <italic>Pachyma</italic>, which was sanctioned by Fries, has nomenclatural priority (ICN, Art. F.3.1), and this name well represents the economically important stage of the generic type. So we propose to use <italic>Pachyma</italic> rather than <italic>Wolfiporia</italic>, and subsequently <italic>Pachyma hoelen</italic> and <italic>Pachyma cocos</italic> are the valid names for “Fuling” in East Asia and “Tuckahoe” in North America, respectively. In addition, a new combination, <italic>Pachyma pseudococos</italic>, is proposed. Furthermore, it seems that <italic>Pachyma cocos</italic> is a species complex, and that three species exist in North America.</p>