Thecaphora


 * Thecaphora was also proposed for the order of cnidarians usually known as Leptomedusae.

Thecaphora is a genus of basidiomycote fungus which contains several species of plant pathogens. The widespread genus contained about 57 species in 2008. and held 61 species in 2020.

In 2008, genus Glomosporium and Kochmania were declared synonyms of Thecaphora. Also Sorosporium mohgaoense became Thecaphora mohgaoensis.

The genus Thecaphora contains plant-parasitic microfungi infecting hosts belonging to a range of dicotyledonous families. The species and their current nomenclature were summarised by Vánky et al. (2008), and Vánky (2012). Recently, three new species were described in Crous et al. (2018), Kruse et al. (2018), and Piątek et al. (2021). Thecaphora species are characterised by having spores in balls (or rarely single), generally without sterile cells, and infections are found in a range of different organs of their host plants.

Hosts
Thecaphora solani (also called potato smut), is a smut fungus attacking tubers and underground stems of Solanum species, including potato Solanum tuberosum and also tomato Solanum lycopersicum and nearby native weed Datura stramonium (Mordue, 1988). in the Andean region of South America. It is not restricted to the higher, cooler elevations, but it has also been a problem in coastal Peru (Bazan de Segura 1960; Zachmann and Baumann, 1975), and also occurs in Mexico. The fungus can be transported within infected tubers and other planting material and also on their surfaces if they become contaminated with the spores. The fungus also can survive in the soil and therefore is difficult to eradicate.

Thecaphora melandrii was found to infect species in the Caryophyllaceae family, forming sori with spore balls in the floral organs. This included Silene latifolia, Silene nutansa , Silene vulgarisa and Stellaria gramineaa  It was found in Britain on Silene uniflora Thecaphora schwarzmaniana was found on Rheum ribes in Iran and Turkey. Thecaphora anthemidis was found on species of Anthemis (Asteraceae family). Thecaphora dahuangis causes leaf smut disease in Rheum palmatum (or dahuang), a folk medicinal plant in China.

Species
As accepted by Species Fungorum;


 * Thecaphora affinis
 * Thecaphora alsinearum
 * Thecaphora amaranthicola
 * Thecaphora ambrosiae
 * Thecaphora androsaces
 * Thecaphora androsacina
 * Thecaphora anthemidis
 * Thecaphora arnicae
 * Thecaphora australiensis
 * Thecaphora burkartii
 * Thecaphora californica
 * Thecaphora capensis
 * Thecaphora capsularum
 * Thecaphora cerastii
 * Thecaphora cuneata
 * Thecaphora dahuangis
 * Thecaphora deformans
 * Thecaphora denticulata
 * Thecaphora desmodii
 * Thecaphora frezzii
 * Thecaphora haumanii
 * Thecaphora hedysari
 * Thecaphora heliopsidis
 * Thecaphora hennenii
 * Thecaphora hieronymi
 * Thecaphora hosackiae
 * Thecaphora iresines
 * Thecaphora italica
 * Thecaphora lagenophorae
 * Thecaphora lathyri
 * Thecaphora lithospermi
 * Thecaphora loti
 * Thecaphora lupini
 * Thecaphora maireanae
 * Thecaphora melampodii
 * Thecaphora melandrii
 * Thecaphora mexicana
 * Thecaphora mohgaoensis
 * Thecaphora molluginis
 * Thecaphora neomexicana
 * Thecaphora oberwinkleri
 * Thecaphora oxalidis
 * Thecaphora oxytropis
 * Thecaphora pakistanica
 * Thecaphora piluliformis
 * Thecaphora pimpinellae
 * Thecaphora polymniae
 * Thecaphora pulcherrima
 * Thecaphora pustulata
 * Thecaphora ruppiae
 * Thecaphora saponariae
 * Thecaphora schwarzmaniana
 * Thecaphora seminis-convolvuli
 * Thecaphora smallanthi
 * Thecaphora solani
 * Thecaphora solidaginis
 * Thecaphora sphaerophysae
 * Thecaphora spilanthis
 * Thecaphora stajsicii
 * Thecaphora thlaspeos
 * Thecaphora thornberi
 * Thecaphora trailii
 * Thecaphora trigonellae
 * Thecaphora tunicata
 * Thecaphora ulicis
 * Thecaphora viciae
 * Thecaphora viciae-amoenae

Former species;


 * T. africana = Tolyposporium kuwanoanum, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. amaranthi = Glomosporium amaranthi, Glomosporiaceae
 * T. anemarrhenae = Floromyces anemarrhenae, Floromycetaceae
 * T. apicis = Moreaua apicis, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. astragali = Thecaphora affinis
 * T. aterrima = Moreaua aterrima, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. bulbinellae = Urocystis bulbinellae, Urocystidaceae
 * T. carcinodes = Urocystis carcinodes, Urocystidaceae
 * T. convolvuli = Thecaphora capsularum
 * T. convolvuli = Thecaphora capsularum
 * T. dactylidis = Jamesdicksonia dactylidis, Georgefischeriaceae
 * T. decaisneana = Schroeteria decaisneana, Ascomycota
 * T. delastrina = Schroeteria delastrina, Ascomycota
 * T. globuligera = Tolyposporium globuligerum, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. herteriana = Urocystis herteriana, Urocystidaceae
 * T. hyalina = Thecaphora capsularum
 * T. inquinans = Prosthecium inquinans, Melanconidaceae
 * T. jubilei = Thecaphora androsaces
 * T. kochiana = Moreaua kochiana, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. lepidospermatis = Moreaua lepidospermatis, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. leptideum = Glomosporium leptideum, Glomosporiaceae
 * T. leptocarpi = Restiosporium leptocarpi, Websdaneaceae
 * T. littoralis = Moreaua littoralis, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. mauritiana = Moreaua mauritiana, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. mauritianum = Moreaua mauritiana, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. melanogramma = Schizonella melanogramma, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. muelleriana = Moreaua muelleriana, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. rhynchosporae = Moreaua fischeri, Anthracoideaceae
 * T. rodwayi = Moreaua rodwayi, Anthracoideaceae