基因组学时代的真菌分类学:机遇与挑战

Fungal taxonomy in the genomics era:opportunities and challenges

真菌物种的形态特征有限,加之形态滞后和形态可塑性,仅靠外部形态、内部结构及生理生化指标,很难把握真菌的系统亲缘。应用DNA测序、基因组测序、比较基因组学及生物信息学等技术,研究人员可以快速识别真菌演化中出现的数量众多的单系支系,为建立各分类等级的新分类单元提供有力证据,为真菌分类学研究带来了新的希望和活力。自2000年以来,在真菌界至少发表了1新亚界、4新门、7新亚门、19新纲、9新亚纲、40余新目等高级分类单元。近3年来,我国发表了20余个真菌新属,其中绝大多数属的建立都有分子证据支持。可以预见,大量的新种、新属、新科乃至更高级分类单元将会在今后10年内持续发现和建立。这必将大大促进真菌分类学的发展,完善现有的真菌分类系统。我们应该顺势而上,利用我国丰富的真菌资源,为真菌分类学的发展做出应有贡献。与此同时,真菌分类学也面临着十分严峻的挑战。挑战主要来自3个方面,一是研究变得越来越综合,不但需要有相应的研究经费支持,而且要求从事该领域的研究人员技术更全面、知识更广博及知识更新速度更快捷;二是新物种描述进度偏慢,远远不能满足人们对物种认识和利用的日益增长的需要;三是研究人员亟需创新研究模式,以新技术、新思路、新机制来构建新的真菌分类学,加速新物种的发现和描述进度,最终为社会进步和科学发展服务。

Abstract： Due to morphological paucity and stasis, and phenotypic plasticity, phylogenetic relationships of fungi cannot easily be grasped based on merely morphological characters, cellular and subcellular structures, and biochemical andphysiological features. New techniques, such as DNA and genome sequencing, comparative genomics and bioinformatics, have revolutionized the study of fungal taxonomy, and a large number of lineages in fungal evolution can be recognized this way, which, consequently, provides strong support for establishing new taxa at different taxonomic levels. Since 2000, at least one new subkingdom, four new phyla, seven new subphyla, nineteen new classes, nine new subclasses, and over forty new orders have been created. In the last three years, over 20 new fimgal genera were published by Chinese mycologists, most of which are supported with molecular evidence. It is anticipated that a large number of new species, new genera, new families and even new higher taxa are going to be discovered and erected in the next ten years. We could take advantage of the highly rich fungal resources in China and make due contributions to the taxonomy of fungi. Meanwhile, fimgal taxonomy is confronted with serious challenges. The challenges are mainly as follows： 1） studies are becoming more and more comprehensive and multi-technique based, which needs not only corresponding financial supports but also, for researchers, more all-round skills, broader background knowledge, and faster speed of renewal of knowledge; 2） the speed of description and documentation of new taxa is slow and needs to be accelerated in order to serve the increasing needs of people for recognition and utilization of species; 3） it is urgent to innovate our research schemes, and to adopt new techniques, new ideas and new strategies in order to advance taxonomy of fimgi, to speed up the discovery and documentation of new taxa, and last but not least to serve the social progress and science development.