ABSTRACT
The identification of the fungal species on infected art pieces is an important part of restoration and conservation work. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was then used to amplify the internally transcribed spacer (ITS) of the nuclear ribosomal RNA genes. The PCR products were cloned and sequenced and compared to existing ITS sequences of a large database of fungal species. The chapter analyses the fungal sequence data by constructing a large fungal ITS sequence data base followed by phylogenetic analysis of the data base including the sequences from the fungal spots. The chapter utilizes two approaches relevant to the identification of species using PCR and DNA sequencing techniques. These two approaches are based on phylogenetic principles used in systematic studies.
