Cryptococcus yokohamensis sp. nov., a basidiomycetous yeast isolated from trees and a Queensland koala kept in a Japanese zoological park

Abstract

Three strains were isolated from the nostrils of a koala and the surrounding environment in a Japanese zoological park. Sequence analysis of the nuclear rDNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and the large subunit rDNA D1/D2 domains in addition to physiological and morphological studies indicated that the isolates represent a single novel species belonging to the basidiomycetous genus Cryptococcus (Tremellales, Tremellomycetes, Agaricomycotina). Phylogenetic analysis based on D1/D2 and ITS regions revealed that the novel species belongs to the Fuciformis clade. The name Cryptococcus yokohamensis sp. nov. is proposed to accommodate these isolates with strain JCM 16989(T) (=TIMM 10001(T)=CBS 11776(T)=DSM 23671(T)) as the type strain.