KINGDOM FUNGI
CHARACTERISTICS of FUNGI
 The
Kingdom Fungi includes
eukaryotic, sessile heterotrophs that
include a wide variety of organisms
from unicellular yeasts to
mushrooms and molds.
FUNGAL STRUCTURE & FUNCTION
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Except for yeasts, all fungi are multicellular
Fungi have cell walls made of a carbohydrate
substance called chitin (this is the same
material that insects are made of!)
Multicellular fungi are composed of thin
filaments called hyphae, each of which is about
one cell thick and has 1-2 nuclei.
Many hyphae strung together form a mycelium.
FUNGAL STRUCTURE & FUNCTION
FUNGAL STRUCTURE & FUNCTION
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The mycelium is well-suited to absorb food
because it allows a large surface area to
come in contact with its food source
What we recognize as a mushroom is
actually the reproductive structure (fruiting
body) of the mycelium that is growing below
ground, kind of like the roots of a plant.
FUNGAL REPRODUCTION
Most fungi reproduce both sexually or
asexually.
 Asexual reproduction takes place
when hyphae break off from the
fungus and begin to grow on their
own.
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FUNGAL REPRODUCTION
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Some fungi (like this
puffball) produce spores,
which can scatter and
form new organisms
because spores are
reproductive cells that
are capable of
undergoing mitosis.
FUNGAL REPRODUCTION
FUNGAL REPRODUCTION
 Sexual
reproduction in fungus
usually involves the hyphae of two
organisms fusing together in the
same cell.
FUNGAL NUTRITION
Unlike animals, fungi do not ingest their
food.
 Instead they secrete powerful digestive
enzymes into their food & digest it
outside of their bodies and then absorb it.
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FUNGAL NUTRITION
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Many fungi are
decomposers,
which means they
feed by absorbing
nutrients from
decaying matter in
the soil.
FUNGAL NUTRITION
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Other fungi live as
parasites,
absorbing
nutrients from the
bodies of their
hosts.
HOW FUNGI SPREAD
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Fungal spores are found
in almost every
environment. This is
why molds seem to
spring up in any location
that has the right
combination of moisture
and food.
HOW FUNGI SPREAD
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The dry, almost
weightless, spores
that many fungi
produce can
scatter easily in
the wind.
HOW FUNGI SPREAD
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Other fungi are specialized to
lure animals, which they use to
disperse their spores over large
distances.
The stinkhorn is a fungus that
smells like rotting meat, which
attracts flies, who eat a sticky
fluid substance found on the
fungus and distribute fungal
spores in their excrement.
DIVISIONS of KINGDOM FUNGI
 Kingdom
Fungi is divided into 4
major divisions (phyla).
 The divisions are based on the
structures that the fungi in each
phylum uses for reproduction.
DIVISIONS of KINGDOM FUNGI
 The
4 phyla of Kingdom Fungi:
Zygomycota
Ascomycota
Basidiomycota
Deuteromycota
ZYGOMYCOTA
 Common
molds
 Ex. bread mold
 Use zygospores
to reproduce
Black bread mold
ASCOMYCOTA
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Sac fungi
Ex. truffles, yeasts,
cup fungi
Use ascus for
reproduction
Can cause Ergot
poisoning (humans)
and chestnut blight
(trees)
BASIDIOMYCOTA
Club fungi
 Ex. Mushrooms,
puffballs & rusts
 Use basidia for
reproduction
 Some are harmful
& parasitic and
destroy crops.
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DEUTEROMYCOTA
Imperfect fungi
 Ex. Penicillium
 Have never been
observed
undergoing sexual
reproduction
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FUNGI AS DECOMPOSERS
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Fungi play an essential role in
maintaining equilibrium in nearly every
ecosystem, where they recycle nutrients
by breaking down the bodies of wastes
and other organisms.
FUNGI AS DECOMPOSERS
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Without decomposition, the energy-rich
compounds that living things acquire while
they are alive would never be recycled into
the Earth.
If these important minerals were not
recycled back into the Earth, our soil would
become depleted and the Earth would
become lifeless and barren.
FUNGAL PLANT DISEASES
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WHEAT
RUST: Caused
by a club
fungus that
infects wheat
crops
FUNGAL PLANT DISEASES
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CORN SMUT:
Fungus that
destroys corn
crops
HUMAN FUNGAL DISEASES
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ATHLETE’S FOOT
& JOCK ITCH:
Caused by an
imperfect fungi that
makes an inflamed
sore from which the
spores spread easily
from person to
person
HUMAN FUNGAL DISEASES
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RING WORM:
Same fungus
that causes
Athlete’s foot
HUMAN FUNGAL DISEASES
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YEAST
INFECTION:
Grows in moist
regions of the
body
HUMAN FUNGAL DISEASES
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THRUSH: A
painful fungal
infection of the
mouth
ANIMAL FUNGAL DISEASES
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Cordyceps: A
fungus that
infects insects
& ingests their
body tissues
until the insect
dies, then they
feed off the
dead matter.
FUNGAL ASSOCIATIONS
Fungi form symbiotic relationships with
other organisms.
 A symbiotic relationship is one in which
organisms live closely together and
usually benefit from their association.
 For example: Lichens & mycorrhizae
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FUNGAL ASSOCIATIONS
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Lichens are a mutualistic
relationship between a fungus
& algae.
They benefit each other
because the algae is
photosynthetic and provide the
fungus with a source of energy
and the fungus, in turn,
provides the algae with water
and minerals.
FUNGAL ASSOCIATIONS
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Mycorrhizae are a
mutualistic relationship
between a fungus and plant
roots.
The hyphae of the fungus
help plants absorb water
and minerals, while the roots
provide an energy source
via photosynthesis.
THE END
THERE’S A FUNGUS AMONG US!