Kingdom Fungi
• Continued......
Fungal Phyla
• 3 phyla but 4 groups:
• Phylum Zygomycota (zygomycetes or bread molds):
Meiospores made by zygosporangium (resistant
microscopic structure).
• Phylum Ascomycota (ascomycetes or sac fungi):
Meiospores made in sac-like ascus. Asci (plural)
containing in fruiting body called ascoma (plural
ascomata).
• Phylum Basidiomycota (basidiomycetes or club
fungi): Meiospores made on club-like basidium.
Basidia (plural) contained in fruiting body called
basidioma (plural basidiomata).
Fungal Phyla
• 3 phyla but 4 groups
• 4th group? Fungi that don’t make meiospores
(to our knowledge)
• Called Imperfect Fungi
• Reproduce only asexually (by mitospores)
• Not a true phylum but a temporary holding
group.
Fungal Phyla: Zygomycota
• Small group (1,000 species)
Fungal Phyla: Zygomycota
• Small group (1,000 species)
• Make coenocytic hyphae (no crosswalls).
Fungal Phyla: Zygomycota
• Zygosporangium is key
trait: often thick-walled
and stress-resistant
• No dikaryotic hyphae:
karyogamy followed by
meiosis.
Zygosporangium
photo
Zygosporangia
of 3 genera of
zygomycetes
Fungal Phyla: Zygomycota
• Make two types of spores:
– meiospores from zygosporangium
– mitospores (asexual) from mitosporangia. These
help fungus to spread rapidly.
mitospores
meiospores
Fungal Phyla: Ascomycota
• Largest group of fungi (32,000 species)
Scarlet
cup
Morel
Carbon
fungus
Fungal Phyla: Ascomycota
• Hyphae septate
Ascoma
• Meiospores
(called
ascospores) made
in ascus in
ascoma (fruiting
body)
• Dikaryotic
hyphae and
monokaryotic
hyphae together
form ascoma.
Fungal Phyla: Ascomycota
• Mitospores often made by pinching off cells at tips of
hyphae. These called conidia. Each can start new
mycelium.
Fungal Phyla: Ascomycota
• Yeasts: an important group of (mostly) ascomycetes
• Fermentation by yeasts useful for making alcoholic
beverages and in baking. Worth billions of dollars a
year to industry.
Modern industrial
wine-making
Fungal Phyla: Ascomycota
• Yeasts: an important group of (mostly) ascomycetes
• Some yeasts can cause disease: yeast infections and
others.
Yeast infection
between toes
Fungal Phyla: Ascomycota
• Some ascomata are edible and highly
prized by gourmets
• Truffles (worth up to $320/pound)
• Morels
Morel
Truffle
cut open
Pile of
truffles
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Large group (22,000 species)
Earth stars
Inky caps
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Hyphae septate
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Meiospores made
on club-shaped
basidium in
basidioma (fruiting
structure)
• Dikaryotic hyphae
predominate in life
of organism, and
basidioma made
only of these
hyphae.
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Basidiomata
commonly
observed.
A mushroom
A jelly fungus
A stinkhorn
A shelf or bracket fungus
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Sometimes form circle as fungus grows from initial
point: “fairy ring”
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Sexual reproduction: Usually do not make
mitospores, but mycelium can become fragmented to
form separate individuals.
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Humongous fungus!
• Largest organism on
planet?
• Armillaria in National
Forest in Oregon
reported to be 3.5 miles
across, cover 2,200 acres.
May be 2,400 yr old.
Fig. 36.6
Aerial view of smaller forest
patches infected by Armillaria
in Montana
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Importance:
– decomposers
Rotting log
with basidiomata
on it
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Importance:
– food (basidioma eaten,
but beware of
poisonous ones)
Amanita (death cap fungus:
A poisonous basidioma
Fungal Phyla: Basidiomycota
• Importance:
– pathogens of plants
(smuts and rusts cause
billions of dollars in
damage to grain
crops).
Stem
rust
on
wheat
Corn smut
Ergot on wheat
or rye
Ergotism, LSD,
Salem witch trials
Fungal Groups: Fungi Imperfecti
•
•
•
•
Large group (17,000 species)
Hyphae septate
Reproduction asexual only, by conidia
Most thought to be Ascomycota fungi, but
until sexual reproduction observed we can’t
be sure!
Fig. 36.12, showing
conidia of several
genera
Fungal Groups: Fungi Imperfecti
• Importance
– decomposers
– food rotters (can make toxins: aflatoxins in peanuts)
– food production (flavor cheeses: Roquefort, Bleu
cheese)
Bleu cheese
Fungal Groups: Fungi Imperfecti
• Importance
– produce antibiotics (ex, penicillin from Penicillium)
and other drugs (cyclosporin)
Note inhibited
growth of
Staph
bacterium
near fungus
colony
Fungal Groups: Fungi Imperfecti
• Importance
– plant and animal diseases (human examples: athlete’s
foot and ringworm)
Athlete’s foot infections
Ringworm on leg
Special Fungal Mutualisms
• Mutualism: relationship between 2 species where both
benefit
• Lichens: partnership between fungi and unicellular
photosynthesizer (green alga or cyanobacteria)
Fig. 36.13
Special Fungal Mutualisms
• Fungus forms body and protects
and directs photosynthesizer,
obtains materials from partner
• Together, can colonize harsh
environments.
Fig. 36.14
Lichen Importance
• Primary producers in
harsh environments
(base of food chains)
• Ex, reindeer in arctic eat
large amounts of lichens
• Some are pollution
sensitive: used as
bioindicators of air
quality.
Special Fungal Mutualisms
• Mycorrhizae: Association of fungus with plant root
• Common: 90% of plants do this!
• Mutualism: fungus extends into soil and aids in
uptake of nutrients (P, Zn, Cu in particular) for plant
• Fungus obtains sugars from plant.
Special Fungal Mutualisms
• Important in revegetation/reclamation of disturbed
areas: if fungi not present, plants don’t do well!.
Plant on left grown
without mycorrhizal fungi
Special Fungal Mutualisms
• Two types: endomycorrhizae in which fungus
penetrates root cells
• Ectomycorrhizae in which fungus penetrates between
root cells.
Fig. 36.15b
Fig. 36.15a
Special Fungal Use: Biocontrol
• Biocontrol: Using an organism’s natural enemies
against it
• Some fungi attack insect pests
• Some fungi capture and consume nematodes
(roundworms) that can cause agricultural problems.
Fly killed by fungus
Nematode predator fungus showing
ring-like traps holding worm
Plants: Kingdom Plantae
• Large: 300,000 species
Plants: Kingdom Plantae
• Important:
– Gorgeous
Plants: Kingdom Plantae
• Important:
– Major producers in terrestrial ecosystems
Plants: Kingdom Plantae
• Important:
– Vital for human food,
medicines, clothing, building
materials, etc.
Foxglove: source of
digitalin (heart med.)
Corn
Cotton
Lumber from trees
Plants: Kingdom Plantae
• Important:
– Create much of the oxygen in atmosphere (and
ozone!)
Aquatic plant making
oxygen bubbles
during photosynthesis
Oxygen and Ozone
• Ozone is pollutant at Earth’s surface
• At outer atmosphere, oxygen gas produces ozone
layer
• Vital, as it absorbs lots of ultraviolet (UV)
radiation
• UV radiation damages DNA in skin cells
• Can cause skin cancer.
The Ozone Hole
•
•
•
•
Some pollutants damage ozone layer
It’s getting thinner
At South Pole, a hole has started to appear
Getting larger.
The Ozone Hole
• Some pollutants damage ozone layer (getting
thinner)
• At South Pole, a “hole” has started to appear.
The Ozone Hole
• UV light is one cause
of skin cancer
• Australia already has
highest skin cancer
rate on Earth.
Plants: General Features
• Chemistry
– chlorophylls a + b, carotenoids (accessory
pigments that aid photosynthesis)
– energy stored as starch
Plants: General Features
• Chemistry
– cell walls of cellulose
Fig. 5.9a
Plants: General Features
• Chemistry
– review: starch and cellulose are both made of
glucose.
Fig. 3.27
Plants: General Features
• Water-saving features (most)
– cuticle: waxy layer on body surface
– stomata: specialized cells that form pores in
surface (let CO2 in for photosynthesis, can close
to prevent water loss when it’s dry)
Glowing
layer is
cuticle
Plants: General Features
• Water transport tissues: vascular tissues
– Xylem: dead cells that carry water. Walls rigid
with lignin (reinforcing material, resists
decomposition)
– Phloem: living cells that carry sugars.
Xylem
tissue
Phloem tissue
Plants: General Features
• Reproductive features
– Sporic meiosis (form gametophyte and
sporophyte bodies)
– Gametes specialized (oogamy)
• eggs: contain genes and stores materials (large)
• sperm: contain genes. Small to be mobile
– Gametangia specialized
• made of many cells (multicellular)
• with outside layer of protective cells (sterile jacket)
Plants: General Features
• Reproductive features
– Gametangia specialized
• antheridium: gametangium that contains sperm
• archegonium: gametangium that contains an egg
Archegonium
Antheridium
Plants: General Features
• Reproductive features
– Egg fertilized in archegonium
– Zygote starts to grow in archegonium
• embryo: young sporophyte retained and nourished by
parent sporophyte
Young embryo
in archegonium
Older embryo
Plants: General Features
• Reproductive features
– Make only meiospores (no mitospores for
asexual reproduction)
– These made in meiosporangia (spore containers),
called just sporangia because no mitospores
made
– Inside meiosporangia, diploid cells called
meiospore mother cells undergo meiosis to make
meiospores (sometimes called just spores
because no mitospores are made).
Plants: General Features
• General
Life
Cycle
Fig.
37.3
Plants: Where from?
• Green algae: One line of green algae
gave rise to all plants
Fig.
32.12
Plants: Where from?
• Green algae. One line of green algae
gave rise to all plants
• Plantae are monophyletic
Fig.
37.2