The Fungi Kingdom Mycology - the study of fungi fungi - plural fungus - singular 4 Main Characteristics of Fungi 1) fungi are eukaryotic they have a nuclei & mitochondria 2) they are heterotrophs they depend on other organisms for food 3) they are multicellular 4) they cannot move on their own

The Fungi Kingdom 4 Reasons Fungi Are Different From Plants 1) fungi lack chlorophyll 2) fungi are not photosynthetic Saprophyte-feeds on dead/decaying organisms cannot produce their own food most are saprophytes some are parasites 3) they never reproduce by seeds 4) most fungi have cell walls made of chitin… Plant cell walls are made of cellulose

The Fungi Kingdom Parts of fungi: network of thin thread-like structures (filaments) that form the “body” of fungus Hyphae – hypha - singular hyphae - plural hyphae contain cytoplasm hyphae grow and branch until they cover and digest the food source (upon which the fungi is growing).

The Fungi Kingdom Mycelium - a mass of hyphae mycelia - plural The mycelium is usually hidden in the soil, in wood, or another food source Some hyphae may be divided by septa. www.anbg.gov.au/fungi/ mycelium.html A mycelium may fill a single ant, or cover many acres

What are we looking at when we see a… fungus-among-us? The Fungi Kingdom What are we looking at when we see a… fungus-among-us? The part of the fungus that we see is only the “fruit” of the organism The ‘living’ body of the fungus is a mycelium

The Fungi Kingdom Fungi Reproduction: 1. Most fungi reproduce both sexually and asexually. 2. Most fungi reproduce by using spores (asexual) 3. Fungi spores are microscopic. EX: Mushrooms & puffballs release large clouds of spores. Each cloud contains millions of spores Reproduction is classified according to: 1) the way they form the spores 2) the shape of the structure in which spores are made

Asexual reproduction – production of various types of spores *Sporangiophores- upright stalk with an enclosed sac ( bread mold) *Conidia - upright stalk with no enclosed sac (penicillin) *Fragmentation – hyphae dry out and shatter releasing individual cells that act like spores (athlete’s foot) *Budding – part of a yeast cell pinches itself off to produce small offspring

Sexual reproduction *Hyphae of different mating types fuse and give rise to a specialized structure that produces spores (diploid) *Most fungi are haploid throughout most of their life cycle When environmental conditions are favorable, asexual reproduction occurs rapidly. When unfavorable conditions stress the organism, sexual reproduction occurs and the offspring have an increased likelihood that they will be better suited for the environment.

The Fungi Kingdom Main Types of Fungi: 1.Zygomycota/Common molds Sporangium fungi reproduces by spores in the sporangia Sporangia- structures found on the tips of hyphae that make spores Spraying with blue vitriol Eg: Bread Mold,Peronospore Bread mold produces spores in sporangia that stick up above the bread

The Fungi Kingdom Types of Fungi 2. Sac Fungi - produce spores in sac-like structures www.rainforestventures.com/ fungi.htm Eg: yeasts,cup fungi,powdery mildews,Penicillinum

2. Sac fungi (Ascomycotes) Unicellular, reproduces by budding Ergot Morels Sir Alexander Flemming-penicillin

3. Phylum Basidiomycota – Club Fungi Gets name from specialized reproduction structure resembling a club, called basidium – found on the underside of mushroom cap in the gills One mushroom may produce 1 billion spores Some are edible, some are toxic Examples: Mushrooms, toadstools Most elaborate life cycle of all the fungi /or cup button

3. Club fungi (Basidiomycetes) Jack-o’-lantern Brackets Earth stars Puffballs

3. Club fungi (Basidiomycetes) Toadstool Eg: Death cap Champignon

Importance of fungi -many of them live in mutualism with the roots of trees. They can substitute root hairs as in the case of pine trees. -they can be decomposers -they can cause diseases to plants, to animals or even humans -they can be edible or poisonous -they can be useful for alimentary,distilling and pharmaceutical industry

Lichens

Where do lichens belong in the classification of living organisms? * Lichens are dual organisms, so they are difficult to place in a classification * They represent symbiotic (mutualistic) relationships between fungi and green algae, fungi and cyanobacteria, or fungi and both * The fungus is the dominant physical component of the lichen thallus, and lichens are usually classified with the fungi * Nevertheless, the association appears to have originated through fungi parasitizing algae and/or cyanobacteria

Human Uses of Lichens Brown, purple and red fabric dyes (e.g. Scottish tweeds and tartans) * Part of the daily diet, e.g. Lecanora esculenta (“manna”?) in Iran, flour from Cetraria islandica (Iceland moss) in Scandinavian ship’s biscuits, Inuit “nirukkaq” - partly digested lichens from caribou & muskox stomachs in winter * Commercial production of sugar in Russia, WWII * ‘Iwatake (Umbilicaria esculanta) as delicacy in Japan More uses of lichens - medicine, embalming and perfumery Many lichen extracts are inhibitory to the growth of Gram-positive bacteria * Some are also effective against Mycobacterium tuberculosus * Oakmoss (Evernia prunastri) and Treemoss (Pseudoevernia furfuracea) are used in Europe to make fixatives for perfumes and soaps. * The antibiotic properties of lichens were exploited by the ancient Egyptians in their embalming procedures

Lichens

Special characteristics of lichens -they are pioneers -they produce acid to dissolve rocks -they don’t tolerate sulphur-dioxide in the air -as they die massively in case of air pollution, they are indicators of it.