AUTHOR=Wang Yao , Fan Qi , Wang Dong , Zou Wei-Qiu , Tang De-Xiang , Hongthong Preeyanat , Yu Hong 

TITLE=Species Diversity and Virulence Potential of the Beauveria bassiana Complex and Beauveria scarabaeidicola Complex

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2022.841604

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2022.841604

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p><italic>Beauveria</italic> is a very important fungal resource. Some <italic>Beauveria</italic> species have great economic and ecological value. Through surveying <italic>Beauveria</italic> in China and Thailand over the past 4 years, 15 <italic>Beauveria</italic> spp. were collected and identified. Three new species—namely, <italic>B. polyrhachicola</italic>, <italic>B. songmingensis</italic>, and <italic>B. subscarabaeidicola</italic>—were described and illustrated based on morphological characteristics and molecular data. The phylogenetic positions of the 15 species were evaluated according to phylogenetic inferences based on six loci (nr<italic>SSU</italic>, nr<italic>LSU</italic>, <italic>TEF</italic>, <italic>RPB1</italic>, <italic>RPB2</italic>, and <italic>Bloc</italic>). Nine species of <italic>Beauveria</italic> in our study were isolated from adult scarab beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). The pathogenicity of the isolates from the <italic>B. bassiana</italic> complex and <italic>B. scarabaeidicola</italic> complex was determined with three bioassays using <italic>B. mori</italic> and <italic>T. molitor</italic> larvae, in addition to <italic>Protaetia brevitarsis</italic> adults. The results indicated that the <italic>B. bassiana</italic> complex isolates had great potential in the biocontrol of the three insects; by contrast, the <italic>B. scarabaeidicola</italic> complex isolates showed obvious host specificity and low virulence.</p>