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Current Genetics

, Volume 28, Issue 3, pp 289–297 | Cite as

Molecular phylogeny of the fungi of the Iceman's grass clothing

  • Franco Rollo
  • Stefano Sassaroli
  • Massimo Ubaldi
Original Paper
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Abstract

To investigate the origin of the fungal hyphae that cover the grass clothing (cloak, boots) found near the neolithic mummy known as the Tyrolean Iceman, two radiocarbon-dated samples of grass were submitted to DNA extraction. The DNA was then PCR amplified using, respectively, primers specific for the region containing the internal transcribed spacers and the 5.8s rDNA (ITS), and primers specific for an approximately 600-bp long fragment of the nuclear small-subunit ribosomal DNA (SSU rDNA) repeat units of eukaryotes. The amplification products were cloned and sequenced. Sequence analysis of 20 individual ITS clones and of ten SSU rDNA clones indicated that three types of fungal DNA can be extracted from the grass. Phylogenetic analyses, using 5.8s and SSU rDNA fungal reference sequences from EMBL and GenBank databases, suggest that the DNAs come, respectively, from a psychrophilic basidiomycetous yeast, phylogenetically close to Leucosporidium scottii, and from two ascomycetes, one of which is possibly related to the Eurotiales

Key words

Iceman Ascomycetes Basidiomycetous yeasts Molecular phylogeny Ancient DNA Psychrophiles 
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Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag 1995

Authors and Affiliations

  • Franco Rollo
    • 1
    • 2
  • Stefano Sassaroli
    • 1
  • Massimo Ubaldi
    • 1
  1. 1.Dipartimento di Biologia molecolare cellulare e animaleUniversità di CamerinoCamerinoItaly
  2. 2.Scuola di Specializzazione in Biochimica e Chimica clinicaUniversità di CamerinoCamerinoItaly

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