biology

Samsoniella hepiali

Samsoniella hepiali is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Samsoniella hepiali rather than just read about it. In short: Samsoniella hepiali is an entomopathogenic fungus. It was discovered in 1982 as a fungus infecting a field collection of infected Hepialus armoricanus originally presumed to be Ophiocordyceps sinensis.

Key takeaways

Samsoniella hepiali belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Samsoniella hepiali to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Samsoniella hepiali from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Samsoniella hepiali is an entomopathogenic fungus. It was discovered in 1982 as a fungus infecting a field collection of infected Hepialus armoricanus originally presumed to be Ophiocordyceps sinensis. It is chemically and pharmacologically similar to O. sinensis, but differs significantly in terms of morphology. Later studies have also confirmed that it is genetically distinct from O. sinensis. It is known to produce cordycepin. Because of its pharmacological similarities to true O. sinensis, it is also known as a type of "cordyceps" for human consumption.

Range Samsoniella hepiali was originally collected in Qinghai, China on ghost moths. Isolates matching the diagnostic DNA sequences were also found in Anhui, China infecting leafhoppers and cicada; in Buenos Aires, Argentina infecting whiteflies and living in soil; and in Guizhou, China infecting ants.

Type strains The original strain isolated is called "82-2" and is deposited as a dry culture in the Herbarium of Institute of Chinese Materia Medica (ICMM). However, the Herbarium's confidentiality rules made "82-2" inaccessible to even Chinese researchers. Wang et al.'s 2015 article in Taxon argues that this makes the holotype effectively "lost" and proposed the more available strain "Cs-4" to be the neotype. "Cs-4" was separately collected from Qinghai and Q.T. Chen et al. had previously confirmed its identity as belonging in this species. In 2018 however, the change was apparently overturned by another Taxon article written by researchers at the ICMM and other institutes arguing that 82-2 has always been publicly accessible. As of April 2025, the NCBI lists a current neotype, CGMCC 3.17103. Index Fungorum identifies CGMCC 3.17103 with the 2015 proposal of Wang et al., which would suggest that it's the formal identifier for "Cs-4". This would also suggest that the neotype was not overturned.

Taxonomic history Q.T. Chen et al. originally placed the species in genus Paecilomyces. In the 1989 definition, P. hepiali is distinguished from P. xylariformis "in the shape and size of conidia and the associated host insects", and from P. farinosus "in the shape and arrangement of phialides, the shape of conidia, its host (Hepialus) and habitat at an altitude of 3000‒4500 m". The 1989 definition was not a valid publication because there was no living holotype specified. This was rectified in 2008 when the authors used the aforementioned dry culture at ICMM as the holotype. A 2020 genetic study, using CGMCC 3.17103 (Cs-4) and seven additional samples, found that what was known as P. hepiali should be placed into the genus Samsoniella. As a result, the current correct name is Samsoniella hepiali. The same article also identified numerous new species of cordycipitoid fungi, in genus Samsoniella and beyond.

Society and culture

Names Paecilomyces hepiali is translated as 蝙蝠蛾拟青霉 "bat-moth [Paecilomyces = pseudo-green-mold]" in Chinese. The first three characters correspond to the specific epithet (hepiali: associated with ghost moths), and the rest corresponds to the genus name. Wang YB et al. (2020) proposes for Samsoniella to be translated as 鳞翅虫草属 "Lepidoptera cordyceps genus" in Chinese, and Samsoniella hepiali as 蝙蝠蛾虫草 "bat-moth cordyceps".

Ethnopharmacology Samsoniella hepiali strain Cs-4 is used in an approved, prescription-only Chinese patent medicine product called "Jinshuibao" found in the Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China. The Pharmacopoeia attributes it with lung, kidney, and chi-restorative properties similar to what is traditionally attributed to O. sinensis. Samsoniella hepiali is also used in more than 260 healthcare products (dietary supplements and similar) in China, with a total market worth of approximately 10 billion RMB.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Samsoniella hepiali

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Samsoniella hepiali claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Samsoniella hepiali before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Samsoniella hepiali ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Samsoniella hepiali

In research: Samsoniella hepiali appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Samsoniella hepiali in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Samsoniella hepiali is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Cordycipitaceae, Fungi in cultivation, Fungus species, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Samsoniella hepiali outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Samsoniella hepiali in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Samsoniella hepiali means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Samsoniella hepiali out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Samsoniella hepiali in simple terms?

Why does Samsoniella hepiali matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Samsoniella hepiali?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Samsoniella hepiali.