Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNPs) with Specificity Between Species A. uessalvadorensis, A. niger and A. neoniger of the Genus Aspergillus (2024)

The genus Aspergillus, specifically the section Nigri, presents taxonomic challenges due to the existence of cryptic species with almost identical morphologies. In this study, genomic variability was analyzed by identifying single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in sequences of A. uessalvadorensis, comparing them with the A. niger and A. neoniger standards. Using the UGENE platform for multiple sequence alignment (MSA) and phylogenetic reconstruction by distances, significant divergence rates (0.20 to 0.29 substitutions per site) were identified. The results demonstrate that A. uessalvadorensis possesses a unique genetic signature, validating its status as an independent taxonomic entity separate from the classical lineages of the section Nigri. The molecular evidence is conclusive: Aspergillus uessalvadorensis is a distinct genomic entity. The architecture of the phylogenetic tree and the numerical distances obtained exceed the thresholds of intraspecific variation, confirming that the use of SNPs and high-resolution tools such as UGENE is essential for the identification of cryptic species. This finding not only contributes a new species to the mycological catalog of El Salvador, but also establishes a methodological precedent for the resolution of taxonomic conflicts in the Nigri section.