1. Fungi

2. DOMAIN Eukarya KINGDOM Fungi General Characteristics: – Eukaryotic – Non-motile – Multicellular – Heterotrophic via absorption (extracellular digestion) – Asexual and Sexual reproductive life cycles; Both results in spore formation Mitosis – nucleus does not break down or reform

3. Most are free-living saprotrophic decomposer and feed on dead organic material. Ecological importance: – Recycling of nutrients within the ecosystem consumers producers decomposers abiotic reservoir nutrients ENTER FOOD CHAIN = made available to producers geologic processes Decomposition connects all trophic levels return to abiotic reservoir

4. Some form symbiotic relationships: Parasitism – Plants: rusts and smuts affect grains Cause of tree disease – Dutch Elm – Man: causes mycoses (medically important ) e.g. Thrush, yeast infections, ringworm, athlete's foot

5. Mutualism – Lichens - Fungi & cyanobacteria (or green algae) Grows on rock; Soil formers e.g. Crustose (crusty); Fruticose (shrubby); Foliose (leafy)

6. – Mycorrhizae - “Fungus-root” in plants Increases surface area in plant roots – increases absorption 2 Types: – Arbuscular (penetrate roots) – Ectomycorrhizae (surround roots)

7. General economic importance: (pg. 363) – Produce medicines: e.g. antibiotics (Penicellium and cyclosporins) – Produce foods: e.g. Cheese – roqueforts and brie – Used in making of – breads, beers, and wines – Consumed as delicacies: e.g. Truffles, morels, and portabella (NOTE: Some deadly poisonous & some produce hallucinogens like LSD) QUESTION: What economic impact does “black” mold have? Rusts & smuts?

8. Structures: Hyphae - filaments which make-up the mycelium (body) Mycellium - mass of hyphae; body of fungus Septa - divides hyphae into sections via crosswalls Cell Wall - composed of chitin Yeast - unicellular, round and not associated with hyphae; reproduce by asexual budding Spore - reproductive cell that grows a new organism; dispersal via wind; produced as a result of asexual or sexual life cycle QUESTION: If a single fungus can produce billions of spores, why aren’t there fungi everywhere?

10. Five basic groups Chytridiomycota Zygomycota* Glomeromycota Ascomycota* Basidiomycota* Grouped by: – Differences in life cycles – Structures that produce spores (particularly in sexual part of the life cycle – Comparative molecular data

11. Phylum Sexual Reproductive Structure SeptaExample ZygomycotaZygosporeabsentblack bread molds Ascomycota Ascipresentsac fungi Lack asci present imperfect fungi BasidiomycotaBasidiapresentclub fungi Structures that produce spores – spores are windblown

13. Phylum Chytridiomycota – chytridiomycetes or chytrids – Most closely related to ancestral fungi – Aquatic, flagellated fungi – Life cycle: both haploid and diploid multicellular stages – Motile zoospores – Found in soil, fresh water and saline estuaries

14. Phylum Zygomycota - black bread molds (e.g. Rhizopus) – Aseptate hyphae – Sexual reproduction produces zygospores – Most saprotrophs (living off dead organic materials; recyclers) – Some parasitic zygomycosis – infection by zygomycetes – often fatal – requires extensive surgery and antifungal treatment.

15. Phylum Glomeromycota – glomeromycetes – Small group of fungi – Tips of hyphae grow into plant roots Arbuscular mycorrhizae – Asexual reproduction

16. Phylum Ascomycota - sac fungi (e.g. cup fungi & yeast) – Account for 75% of all fungi – Two main groups: Sexual Ascomycota – Examples: baking & brewing yeast, morels & truffles, parasitic to plants – Plant diseases: Leaf curl fungi & mildews, Dutch elm disease, Ergot (infects grain)

17. Asexual Ascomycota - sexual life cycle has not been demonstrated (Deuteromycetes – imperfect fungi) – Fungi Imperfecti - Contains the medically important fungi – Examples of Mycoses: Range from skin, deeper tissue, systemic infections – Tineas (cutaneous dermatophytes) – e.g. ringworm, athlete’s foot, & jock itch – Aspergillosis – e.g. swimmer’s ears & lung infection – Candidiasis – e.g. thrush & vaginitis; Causative agent Candida albicans

18. Phylum Basidiomycota - club fungi (e.g. mushrooms, toadstools, puffballs, shelf fungi) – Basidiocarps AKA fruiting bodies (cap) – Some are: Responsible for rusts and smuts (parasitize cereal crops) Delicacies (e.g. portabella and shiitake) Poisonous