BACKGROUND: Mycology collections are used to preserve fungi for future studies or to obtain extracts, drugs and others. Fungal preservation in culture media by successive sampling requires care and is not always easy. Novel techniques are necessary to maintain viable fungi for longer periods. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of preservation of fungi in distilled water for 12 months. METHODS: 43 species of fungi were maintained in glass flasks with sterile distilled water. Two hundred to 250 _l of the liquid were monthly collected and inoculated in potato dextrose agar to evaluate growth and viability of the fungi. RESULTS: All fungi grew every month during one year. CONCLUSIONS: reservation of fungal strains in distilled water allowed, in a short time interval, to prove viability and sporulation capacity of the fungi. Preservation of fungi in distilled water is a cheap and practical method to maintain a mycology collection.
Culture; Distilled water; Fungi
