Fungus

Chapter 31

Not as innocent as they look!

Mucor Diabetes

Sporotrichosis

Madura Foot

Severe Athletes Foot

Characteristics

Eukaryotic Majority multicellular (except yeast) Lack chlorophyll Chitin Heterotrophic; they digest food outside

the body and absorb it (saprobes).

Study this!

Body structure

Mass of netlike filaments called hyphae. Entire mass of hyphae is called the

mycelium. Hyphae

– divided into cells by cross walls called septa– continuous cells called coenocytic hyphae– Embedded into a plant called haustoria

Coenocytic

Haustoria

Septate

Reproduction

Sexual or asexual spores. Sexual reproduction occurs during

difficult conditions. Under favorable conditions asexual

spores are produced Adult bodies of most fungi are haploid.

Diversity of Fungi:

Classified into units called Divisions. 3 divisions based primarily on variations

of sexual reproduction and structures.

Division Zygomycota:

Terrestrial fungi that live in soil or on decaying plant or animal material.

Coenocytic hyphae, with many haploid nuclei. Asexual spores produced by sporangia Zygosporangia (resistant bodies) form during

sexual reproduction

2. Division Ascomycota: Sac fungi. Range from yeast to large cup fungi. A small sac called an asci is the sexual

reproductive structure Asci are packed into large fruiting

structures called ascocarps.

Multicellular septate hyphae Conidia are asexual spores Ascospores are sexual spores. Important in decomposing lignin and

collagen of dead plants and animals. Some are mutualistic (ex. lichen) Many are parasitic to plants (ex.

powdery mildew and Dutch elm disease

3.Division Basidiomycota:

Club fungus Ex. Shelf fungi, puffballs and stink horns Sexual reproductive structure called the

basidium. The club like shape gives the name to

some of the most common fungal types in this division.

QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.

Division Deuteromycota:

These organism have no known sexual life style.

Fungi imperfecti Ex. Penicillium

Lichens:

Symbiotic associations of millions of algal cells tangled in a lattice of fungal hyphae.

Soredia, small clusters of hyphae with embedded algae

Lichens

Mycorrhizae

Mutualistic association of a fungus and a root.

90% of the fungi is basidiomycota

Mycorrhizae