Amazonian Fungi

Antibacterial activity of Lentinula raphanica collected in Central Amazon

This research has investigated the antibacterial resistance of fungi collected at different sites to determine which ones are most resistant to high temperatures and contaminant effects. This should help in the future selection of the most resistant L. raphanica, determining if there is genetic variation and reducing problems with future commercial production of this edible fungus.

The research concluded that antibacterial activity was observed at all temperatures and that there is possible genetic variability between samples, indicating the potential to select the most contamination resistant isolates for future commercial production.

This is the first record of antibacterial activity in Lentinula raphanica.

Training on using the macrofungal identification booklet "Instructions for collecting Agaricales and Gasteroides macrofunges"

The Amazon rainforest is one of the most diverse locations for fungal species in the world. Fungi are fundamental for their role in the decomposition of organic material and for their mycorrhizal endophytic and parasitic interactions in maintaining and balancing the ecosystem. Therefore, knowledge of this need to be strengthened in local communities and the scientific community.

The Amazon macrofungus training courses, sponsored and organized by INCT / CENBAM, for public school teachers and students, were started in 2010 to stop the cycle; "We don't teach about macrofungus because we don't know about macrofungus because we weren't taught about macrofungus ...",

One of CENBAM's goals is to train human resources at various levels.

Phylogeny updates of the order Phallales (Phallomycetidae, Bastidiomycota)

Phallus fungi (order Phallales) are characterized by their mucilaginous tract, where spores are formed and give off an unpleasant odor that attracts dispersing agents, especially insects (Leite et al., 2007). The most up-to-date phylogeny proposed for the order dates from 2014 and includes tropical and subtropical genera and species, subdividing the order into six families with high phylogenetic support: Clathraceae, Claustulaceae Gastrosporiaceae, Lysuraceae, Phallaceae and (Trierveiler-Pereira et al. 2014).

However, the relationships between genders within each family or the taxonomic delimitation between taxa are conflicting, resulting in a large number of synonyms for order. This is partly due to the difficulty in morphologically characterizing the taxa, due to the scarcity and plasticity of the diagnostic characters. In addition, the ephemeral nature of basidiomas makes it difficult to preserve macroscopic characters after dehydration.

The present work aims to update the group systematics through a phylogeny based on molecular data, with emphasis on the positioning of recently collected specimens in the Amazon.

Edible fungus production in the Manaus region. (Lentinula raphanica in Bertolletia excelsa)

The project for the cultivation of naturally occurring Brazilian fungi began in 2012 with the species Lentinula raphanica. Chestnut tree trunks from reforested areas were used as cultivation medium. The techniques were based on shiitake mushroom cultivation using Quercus spp. in Japan and Eucalyptus spp. in Brazil.

The first crops were grown in nurseries in the shade of palm leaves. However, the return was small due to interference from insect attacks, high levels of contamination and losses in the post-collection process, which led the team to study new alternatives for the crop site.

How fungi are used in the Itacoatiara-Mirim community of São Gabriel da Cachoeira, Amazonas, Brazil

The Racoatiara-Mirim indigenous multiethnic community - mainly Baniwa - is located approximately 10 km from the city of São Gabriel da Cachoeira (Amazonas). For some time, this community has been recording, restoring and disseminating its traditional knowledge.

The book "Ana Amopo: Yanomami Mushrooms" was written by indigenous researchers from the Yanomami Indigenous Land and tells several stories from generation to generation about the use of mushrooms in the Itacoatiara Mirim community.

Community leaders were interested in recording this information, with the intention of disseminating it to the community and beyond the borders of São Gabriel da Cachoeira, and contacted researchers from the National Amazon Research Institute (INPA), inviting them to conduct a workshop on mushroom picking attended by 18 people from the community.

Mushrooms were collected during a guided tour of the community forests and gardens, which showed where to find them and demonstrated how the mushrooms were used. The material was sent to INPA and the specimens were identified at species level by macroscopic analysis. The specimens were also reproved.