Genetic differences in wild strains of Lentinula edodes collected from a single fallen tree

Genetic differences among 18 Lentinula edodes strains isolated from a fallen trunk of Quercus mongolica var. grosseserrata were characterized by mating tests and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analyses of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). These strains could be divided into six genets of different mating types. Because the mtDNA of the 18 strains showed four different RFLP genotypes, these strains seemed to have originated from at least 4 distinct parental strains. Strains belonging to the same genet were collected from fruiting bodies located not more than about 1m apart on the fallen tree. Implications of these findings regarding the degree of genetic variation and territory sizes of individual genets of wood-decaying basidiomycetes such as L. edodes are discussed.