Wood rotting polyporales from the biodiversity reserves within the Indian subtropical habitat

Identification of fungi to species level is paramount in both basic and applied applications in scientific research. A diverse group of fungi play a crucial role in ecosystem functioning and significantly contribute to the biodiversity of various ecosystems. In the northeastern state of Mizoram, India, the study of wood-inhabiting fungi holds immense potential for uncovering the region's fungal diversity and ecological interactions. The present study investigated the phylogenetic relationships and taxonomic identities of different fungal species of polypores isolated from diverse parts of Mizoram, India. Fungal species were collected and identified using a macro and micro-morphological characteristics and molecular approaches. Nuclear ribosomal DNA sequences, along with the internal transcribed spacers (ITS-1 and ITS-2), and the 5.8S gene area, were used to identified the collected samples. 23 fungal isolates of polypores were selected for molecular phylogenetic analysis. The 23 species were identified to the species level based on the fungal sequences with known identities in GenBank. The combined approach both morphological and molecular techniques proposed in the study holds the potential to address these challenges and provide a more efficient and accurate way of understanding fungal distribution.