Phylogeny and taxonomy of powdery mildew caused by Erysiphe species on Lupinus hosts

The genus Lupinus (Fabaceae) consists of over 250 plant species located throughout the world. Powdery mildew, caused by Erysiphe species, is a common disease infecting these ecologically, ornamentally, and agriculturally important plants. In the present work, we conducted phylogenetic and taxonomic analyses on Erysiphe species colonizing hosts of the leguminous genus Lupinus, using sequences from the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and 28S genomic regions. Powdery mildews of the genus Erysiphe on Fabaceae are taxonomically intricate and challenging. Therefore, it is necessary to phylogenetically analyze the DNA retrieved from powdery mildew on lupines in a broad context that includes common and allied powdery mildew species that occur on a range of leguminous plants such as Erysiphe astragali, E. baeumleri, E. pisi, and E. trifoliorum. A new species Erysiphe lupini, found in the USA on Lupinus lepidus, L. polyphyllus, and Lupinus sp., is described. Additionally, Erysiphe intermedia ( Microsphaera trifolii var. intermedia) has been confirmed as a North American lupine powdery mildew that is a sister species to E. astragali on Astragalus spp. European Erysiphe collections on lupines were often referred to as E. intermedia, but our analyses have shown that they pertain to E. trifoliorum. The E. trifoliorum clade is composed of several species (i.e. E. baeumleri, E. euonymi, E. hyperici, and E. trifoliorum), that cannot be sufficiently resolved based solely on ITS+28S sequences. Morphological and biological differences between the species are discussed and provide evidence that the species concerned should be maintained. Finally, a sequence obtained from a powdery mildew collected in Portugal on the native Lupinus micranthus pertained to the Erysiphe guarinonii clade. This collection is tentatively treated as Erysiphe sp. To fix the application of the species names E. astragali, E. baeumleri (including its synonym E. marchica), and E. intermedia, epitypes have been designated with ex-epitype sequences.