1. Fungus
Chapter 2 Lesson 4

2. Characteristics Heterotrophs Cell Structure
Secrete digestive juices into food supply, digest the food, and then absorb
Feed on dead organisms, or act as parasites feeding off live organisms
Cell Structure
Eukaryotic
Hyphae – branching, threadlike tubes that
make up the body of the organism
Cell walls – made of chitin

3. Characteristics continued…
Reproduction
Asexually
Produce spores in fruiting bodies (ex. Mushroom)
Budding occurs when a small yeast cell grows from the body of the parent cell and then breaks away
Sexual
Hyphae of two fungi grow together & exchange genetic information

4. Fungi’s Role in Nature Decomposers & Recyclers Food Disease Fighting
Break down chemicals in dead organisms and return those nutrients to the soil
Food
Yeast helps us make bread, mushrooms, alcohol
Disease Fighting
Penicillin – the first, but not only, antibiotic gleaned from fungi
Disease Causing
Common parasites causing disease in plants/crops
Athletes foot
Ringworm

5. Fungi & Nature continued…
Fungi-Plant
Can help plants grow when their hyphae grow on or in the plant root
The hyphae absorb water & nutrients for the plant and the fungi receives food from the plant (symbiosis)
Lichens
Combination of algae & fungi living together to the benefit of both organisms