Arachnomyces bostrychodes

The specific epithet comes from the Greek βοστρυχος-, meaning curl, referencing the curly appearance of the reproductive hyphae.[1]

A. bostrychodes grows septate, hyaline, branched, vegetative hyphae with smooth and thin walls, between 1 and 2 μm wide. The fertile hyphae are well-differentiated, arising as lateral branches from the vegetative hyphae, successively branching to form dense, tightly curled, sinuous clusters that are also between 1 and 2 μm wide, forming random arthroconidia both intercalary and terminally.[1]

The conidia measure 4–8 x 1–2 μm, are mostly curved and truncated at one or more commonly both ends; they are enteroarthric, hyaline, one-celled, smooth-walled, cylindrical, barrel-shaped; they are finger-shaped when terminal. The conidia are separated from the fertile hyphae by rhexolysis. There have been no observations of chlamydospores, racquet-shaped hyphae, setae, or sexual reproduction.[1]

Micrographs of A. bostrychodes strain, showing the sinuous, coiled fertile hyphae (C and D) and the arthroconidia (E). Scale bar = 10 μm