Retrieval of deeply buried culturable fungi in marine subsurface sediments, Suruga-Bay, Japan

Although the presence of fungi in deep subsurface environments has been suggested in some recent reports, there has been only limited information available describing the identification and diversity of culturable fungi from deep subsurface sediments. Our results provide further evidence to support that fungi persist in deep marine subsurface biospheres. Also, it was suggested that marine subsurface biospheres can be a new fungal resource. Further investigation on cultured deep subsurface fungi will provide a better understanding of the ecology and physiology of extremotolerant fungi and their potential for biotechnological application.