Is there a Fungus
among us?
The Kingdom Fungi
• Fungi are not plants, they are
eukaryotic (have nucleus) heterotrophs
(rely on other organisms for food) that
have cell walls.
• Fungus = one
• Fungi = more than one
Fact:
• One of the largest living organisms on earth
belongs to the Fungi kingdom. A large honey
mushroom patch, originating from a single
spore, grows in the Malheur National Forest
in eastern Oregon. The mushroom, Armillaria
ostoyae, lives three feet underground is
estimated to cover 2,200 acres. After testing
samples from various locations, scientists say
it is all one organism. The fungus is 3.5 miles
across and takes up 1,665 football fields.
Experts estimate that the giant mushroom is
at least 2,400 years old. It is about 38 acres
in size and is estimated to weigh more than
100 tons, about as much as a blue whale!
How do they eat with no
mouth?
• They do not ingest
their food. They
digest food outside
of their bodies and
absorb it. Many
absorb nutrients
from decaying matter
or live as parasites.
Parts of a Fungus
• Hyphae-thin onecell thin filaments
that run throughout
the fungus,
spreading and
branching as the
fungus grows;
Parts of a Fungus
• Mycelium –tangled mass of hyphae:
releases digestive enzymes and absorbs
food
• Fruiting bodyreproductive
structure,
ex. the cap of
a mushroom
Reproduction
Fungus can reproduce both sexually and
asexually
• Asexual – two kinds
– produce spores
– a piece of hyphae can break off and
grow a new fungus
• Sexual – two hyphae of opposite sex(+
and -) fuse their nuclei and create
genetic diversity
The evil hand produces a cloud of spores.
Asex
Sex
Four Fungus groups
• Common mold – Zygomycota
• Sac fungi – Ascomycota
• Club fungi – Basidiomycota
• Imperfect fungi - Deuteromycota
Common Molds
• Have two kinds of hyphae:
– Rhizoids – root like,
anchor fungus, release
digestive enzymes
– Stolons – stem like, have
sporangiophores which
can contain up to 40,000
spores
•Phylum zygomycota
Ex. Bread mold
•Life cycle includes
zygospore (a resting
spore that contains
zygotes – sex cells)
Common mold structure
Sac Fungi
Phylum
Ascomycota
ex. Yeast, cup
fungi
• Ascus – sac like structure
that contains spores, part of
fruiting body
• Produce tiny spores, which
are produced by budding,
called conidia, formed in
conidiophores
• Yeast – single celled
organisms produced by
budding
Sac Fungus Life Cycle
Club Fungi
•Phylum
Basidiomycota
•Ex. Grocery
store
mushroom
Basidium – found on gills under
cap of mushroom, spores found
here
Club Fungus Parts
Base
Imperfect Fungus
Phylum Deueteromycota
• Composed of fungi that do not fit in any
other phylum, because we have never
been able to see the sexual phase of
their life cycle.
• Ex. Penicillium – source of antibiotic
penicillin
video
Lichen
•lichen can dissolve rock, survive
severe cold, and remain dormant for
long periods without harm.
• Symbiotic(2 organisms living together)- a union
between fungus and algae . The algae provide
nutrients while the fungus protects them from the
elements. The result is a new organism distinctly
different from its component species.
Lichen
• Algae: provides food by photosynthesis
• Fungus: shelter and hold in moisture
True or False?
People began eating
mushrooms only a century
ago.
False
• Although mushrooms have been
cultivated commercially in the U.S. for
about a century, they've been
considered a delicacy since ancient
times. In fact, Romans fed this "food of
the gods" to soldiers before battle.
True or False?
• Mushrooms have no
nutritional value
.
False
• They contain essential amino
acids, potassium, some B
vitamins and some minerals.
True or False?
• Mushrooms are low in
calories.
True
True or False?
• Poisonous species of
mushrooms look different
from edible ones.
False
• They may look almost
identical.
True or False?
• Mushrooms do not undergo
photosynthesis.
True
True or False?
• Fungus can travel at a
greater acceleration than
any other living thing.
True, kind a
• One species, a Pilobolus, releases its
spores via a “water cannon” at a force of
180,000 g’s. A top roller coaster has an
acceleration of 8-10 g’s.
video