Two new species of Penicillium (Eurotiales, Aspergillaceae) from China based on morphological and molecular analyses

Penicillium is a large and significant genus of fungi, exhibiting widespread distribution across diverse substrates. Ongoing taxonomic and nomenclatural revisions have led to an annual increase in the number of newly described species. This study described two new Penicillium species, i. e., P. lentum and P. tibetense, discovered in China.

They have been identified and characterized through morphological examination and both single gene and multigene phylogenetic analyses. Based on these analyses, P. lentum was classified within the section Brevicompacta, while P. tibetense was placed in the section Lanata-Divaricata. Both species exhibited the morphological features typical of their respective sections.

Penicillium lentum is characterized by restricted growth with dense colonies on agar media and predominantly generates terverticillate conidiophores. Penicillium tibetense demonstrates rapid growth on media and has vigorous growth on CYA at 30 ° C, producing biverticillate conidiophores. Comprehensive descriptions and detailed illustrations of these new species were presented.

A morphological comparison between the new species and their closely related taxa was provided.