Morphology and molecular phylogeny of Cercospora dispori from Disporum smilacinum and Disporum viridescens.

The main objective of the present study is to compile and comprehensively reevaluate all known records of Cercospora dispori in order to establish a standardized framework for the accurate characterization and identification of this species. Nine isolates of C. dispori obtained from Disporum smilacinum and D. viridescens from various regions of Korea were analyzed. The morphological features of the fungus and isolated colonies were described and illustrated. Nucleotide sequences of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, including the protein-coding genes, such as actin (actA), calmodulin (cmdA), translation elongation factor 1-alpha (tef1), and histone H3 (his3), were determined, and a phylogenetic tree was generated from a multi-gene dataset of ITS+tef1+act+cmdA+his3. This study provides a more robust taxonomic placement of C. dispori and clarifies its phylogenetic relationships within the genus Cercospora.