An Electrophoretic Survey of Fourteen Species of the Fungal Genus Ustilago

Strains of 14 species of Ustilago with graminaceous or nongraminaceous hosts were surveyed by acrylamide gel electrophoresis. Although α-esterase, phosphatase, and leucine aminopeptidase zymograms did not characterize species, the leucine aminopeptidase zymograms distinguished U. maydis species with graminaceous hosts and species with nongraminaceous hosts. Media and temperature during growth significantly altered sites of α-esterase and leucine aminopeptidase activity for two strains of U. violacea. Nutritionally deficient strains were more frequently encountered in species with nongraminaceous hosts than in species with graminaceous hosts.