Fungus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fungi

A bracket fungus, on wood.

Scientific classification

Domain: Eukaryota

(unranked): Opisthokonta

Kingdom: Fungi
L., 1753

Divisions

Chytridiomycota
Deuteromycota
Zygomycota
Glomeromycota
Ascomycota
Basidiomycota
The coral fungus Clavaria zollingeri in Babcock State Park, West Virginia, USA.

Fungal hyphae with septa

A fungus (plural: fungi) is a kind of living

organism: yeasts, moulds and mushrooms are types of fungi. The fungi
are a separate kingdom of living things, different
from animals and plants.
Fungi have cells with nuclei. Their cell walls contain chitin, unlike the
cell walls of plants, which contain cellulose. These and other differences
show that the fungi form a single group of related organisms, called the
Eumycota or Eumycetes. They share a common ancestor and
are monophyletic group.
Their basic mode of life is saprophytic: a fungus breaks down
dead organic matter around it, and uses it as food.[1]p107
Contents
[hide]
  1Structure
o 1.1Reproduction
o 1.2Mycelium
 1.2.1Hyphae
 2Symbiosis
 3Pathogens
 4Uses
 5Related pages
 6References

Structure[change | change source]

Reproduction[change | change source]
Fungi reproduce both sexually and asexually. Some fungi
grow mushrooms: these are fruiting bodies. Under the cap there are gills;
the gills bear spores that will disperse, and may develop into new fungi.
Otherwise, fungi use a sporangium to bear asexual spores by mitosis,
or sexual spores by meiosis. The spores are haploid.
Fungi may be single celled or multicellular. Yeast is single-celled, and
reproduces either sexually or asexually. Asexual reproduction occurs by
simple budding (binary fission).
Mycelium[change | change source]

Mycelium of a fungus
The mycelium is the vegetative (non-reproductive) part of a fungus. It is
usually underground (or inside some other substance), and made of
filaments called hyphae.
Hyphae[change | change source]
Hyphae look like threads, or rootlets. The mat of hyphae may be very
thickly woven. The fungus uses them to extract nutrients.
Hyphae are usually syncytia. This means the cell walls (septa) are
mostly not complete, and the cell nuclei are not separated from each
other as in normal cells. Details differ between species.
Symbiosis[change | change source]
Symbiosis means living together. Lichens are a symbiosis between a
fungus and an alga or bacterium. In this partnership the algal cells live
inside the fungus tissue. The end result is a new mat-like life-form which
clings to rock and other surfaces. About 20% of all fungi are lichenized.
Another important kind of symbiosis is mycorrhiza. This is when a
fungus lives inside plant roots; most trees have mycorrhizal roots, and so
do many crop plants. Both sides benefit in this arrangement.
Pathogens[change | change source]

Amanita muscaria
is highly poisonous

Some fungi cause crop diseases; others cause serious disease in humans. Some are highly poisonous: never eat
a mushroom picked in the wild unless you know what you are doing.

Uses[change | change source]

 Edible fungi are widely used as human food.

Certain types of cheese need a fungal species to
 be added. The fungi give a unique flavor and
texture to the cheese.
 Some fungi produce psychotropic (mind-
altering) substances. Several species, most
notably Psilocybin mushrooms (colloquially
known as magic mushrooms), are taken for
their psychedelic properties, so they are illegal in
many countries around the world.
 In modern times, some fungi (for
example, Penicillin) have been used as a source
of antibiotics. The antibiotics are produced by
many fungi as a natural defence against bacteria.
Related pages[change | change source]

 Mycorrhiza
 Lichen
 Candida
References[change | change source]

1. Jump up↑ Margulis L. Schwartz K.V. &

Dolan M. 1999. Diversity of life: the
illustrated guide to the five kingdoms. Jones
& Bartlett, Sudbury MA.
Category:
 Fungi