Vermilacinia johncassadyi
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| Vermilacinia johncassadyi | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Fungi |
| Division: | Ascomycota |
| Class: | Lecanoromycetes |
| Order: | Lecanorales |
| Family: | Ramalinaceae |
| Genus: | Vermilacinia |
| Species: | V. johncassadyi |
| Binomial name | |
| Vermilacinia johncassadyi Spjut (1996) | |
Vermilacinia johncasadyi is a rare fruticose lichen, found on rocks along the Pacific Coast of Baja California peninsula on Punta Cono, and directly westward across the ocean on Cedros Island.[1]
Vermilacinia johncassadyi is classified in the subgenus Vermilacinia, distinguished from related species by its thallus divided into strap-like branches arising from a blackened base to about ¼ the way up the branches, and by producing lichen substances of triterpenes referred to as T1 and T2 in reference to their Rf class on thin-layer chromatography plates. Apothecia, which develop in some thalli, occur in terminal clusters, sometimes extending down along the branch margins. The strap-like branches are recurved in forms that produce apothecia, and erect in forms lacking apothecia.
Vermilacinia laevigata is morphologically similar to V. johncassadyi in its strap-like branches. It differs in its lichen substances (contains T3, not T1 and T2), and development of its apothecia elevated from the branch by a short narrower stalk-like lobe, in contrast to apothecia in V. johncassadyi that appear to pinch off from the branch margins, occurring in aggregate and often not fully developed, the margins notably wavy as a result.
The species was named after a chemist, John Cassady, who was Chairman of the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy at Purdue University, and later Dean of the School of Pharmacy at Ohio State University while the species was under investigation. He, and his graduate student, Thomas McCloud, had accompanied Richard Spjut on an expedition to Baja California during May 1986 for the collection of plant and lichen samples in search of new chemical compounds for treating cancer.[1]