1. Kingdom Fungi

2. Many are saprophytes Many are parasites Many are symbionts
Eukaryotic heterotrophs (How does this make them different from plants???)
Many are saprophytes
Many are parasites
Many are symbionts

3. The next few slides show some examples of common fungi...

4. Shelf Fungus

5. Mushroom

6. Rings of mushrooms are often called fairy rings

7. Mold on fruit
Bread mold
mmm…

8. Puffball releasing spores

9. Morel

10. The cell walls are made with CHITIN instead of cellulose.

11. Mycelium: Mass of tangled filaments Hypha: One individual filament
Structure...
Mycelium: Mass of tangled filaments
Hypha: One individual filament
Hyphae (plural, pronounced “hy-fee”) are divided up by cross walls containing one or more nuclei.

12. How does a fungus obtain energy?
It secretes digestive enzymes that break down organic material into simple molecules.
The fungus absorbs the molecules into the hyphae.

13. How do they reproduce? Sexually Not male or female, but plus or minus!
Opposite types of hyphae meet, fuse, and form a new mycelium containing cells with 2 haploid nuclei
Asexually
Fragmentation (pieces of hyphae break off and form new mycelia)
Spores
Budding

14. Mushrooms
Basidiocarp
Mycelium
Hyphae

15. One fungus mycelium may produce many mushrooms!
The largest organism in the world is a fungus mycelium
Humongous fungus: Up to 8,500 years old and carpeting nearly 10 square kilometers of forest floor!
(that’s equivalent to 1,600 football fields!!)

16. Role of fungi in nature: Decomposers
Decompose and recycle organic and inorganic nutrients
Use chemical energy in dead organisms
Return nutrients and minerals to the soil for use by plants

17. Symbiotic Relationships
Lichens: fungus + green algae (a symbiotic partnership!)
Fungus provides algae with water and minerals
Alga photosynthesizes and provides nutrients to fungus
Therefore, lichens can live in harsh, desolate places!

18. Another symbiotic relationship...
Mycorrhizae: Fungus and green plant (partnership on roots of plants)
Fungal hyphae help absorb water, minerals, nutrients
Plants give fungi products of photosynthesis

19. Fungus and Humans Yeast - Unicellular fungus Mmmmm… Fungus to eat!
Fermentation --> yeast in anaerobic environments produces CO2 and alcohol
Mmmmm… Fungus to eat!
Portobello, Shitake, Porcini, Button Mushrooms; Truffles
Blue splotches in Blue Cheese

20. Plant Diseases
There are many different fungal infections that can hurt or kill plants
Wheat rust kills wheat crops in North America 
Fungi are devastating in the tropics because of high humidity

21. Human Diseases
Athlete’s foot - mycelium grows within the outer layers of skin
Ringworm
Nail fungus
Yeast infections

22. The End