# Astrothelium simplex

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***Astrothelium simplex*** is a species of [corticolous](/source/Corticolous_lichen) (bark-dwelling), [crustose lichen](/source/Crustose_lichen) in the family [Trypetheliaceae](/source/Trypetheliaceae),[1] first described in 2016. It is found in the [Atlantic Forest](/source/Atlantic_Forest) of Brazil.

## Taxonomy

*Astrothelium simplex* was [formally described](/source/Species_description) as a new species by the lichenologists [André Aptroot](/source/Andr%C3%A9_Aptroot) and Suzana Maria de Azevedo Martins in 2016. The [type specimen](/source/Type_(biology)) was collected by the second author in [Caraá](/source/Cara%C3%A1), [Rio Grande do Sul](/source/Rio_Grande_do_Sul), Brazil, on 27 April 2009.[2]

## Description

The [thallus](/source/Thallus) of *Astrothelium simplex* is , , somewhat shiny, and continuous, covering areas up to 7 cm in diameter and approximately 0.3 mm thick. The thallus is olive-green in colour and does not have a , but it does induce [gall](/source/Gall) formation on the [host](/source/Host_(biology)) bark. The ascomata are (pear-shaped), measuring about 0.6–0.9 mm in diameter, typically aggregated in groups of 2–5, and mostly immersed in the bark tissue. The wall is and up to 80 μm thick. [Ostioles](/source/Ostiole) are eccentric, fused, raised, and dark brown, and surrounded by an [ochraceous](/source/Ochre) zone. The does not contain oil globules. [Asci](/source/Ascus) contain eight each. Ascospores are [hyaline](/source/Hyaline), 3-septate, , measuring 56–63 by 15–19 μm, with pointed ends and diamond-shaped , and lack a gelatinous sheath. were not observed.[2]

## Chemistry

The thallus surface of *Astrothelium simplex* is UV−, and the [medulla](/source/Medulla_(lichenology)) does not react to [potassium hydroxide](/source/Potassium_hydroxide) (K−). [Thin-layer chromatography](/source/Thin-layer_chromatography) analysis detected no [secondary metabolites](/source/Secondary_metabolite) in this lichen.[2]

## Habitat and distribution

This species is found on the smooth bark of trees in the [Atlantic Forest](/source/Atlantic_Forest) and at the time of its original publication was known to occur only in Brazil.[2]

## References

1. Aptroot, André; Mendonça, Cléverton de Oliveira; Andrade, Danyelly Santos; Silva, Jeanne dos Reis; Martins, Suzana Maria de Azevedo; Gumboski, Emerson; Fraga, Carlos Augusto Vidigal; Cáceres, Marcela Eugenia da Silva (2016). "New Trypetheliaceae from northern and southern Atlantic rainforests in Brazil". *The Lichenologist*. **48** (6): 713–725. [doi:10.1017/s0024282916000037](https://doi.org/10.1017/s0024282916000037)

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