Myxomycota, satyendra sh., BIO104 D (1).pdf

Info about myxomycota and it's nature

1. 
Myxomycota
: significance
and
learnings

2. 
The beginning
▪The Central idea myxomycota derives from the fundamental knowledge of
fungi which is :-
▪Fungi are a separate kingdom which includes eukaryotic , heterotrophic
organism which lack chlorophyll and contain chitinouscell wall with Their
body being made of hypae, which collectively form mycelium .
▪Their nutrition can be saprophytic , parasitic or symbiotic .
▪The habitat is mostly terrestrial, thrive in warm and moist environment.

3. 
The deep dive!!
▪The kingdom fungi gets divided into two divisions on the basis of presence
and absence of plasmodium, which gives a better segregation method to
clearly examine the nature of the types of fungi.
▪Now plasmodium itself is quite important to understand this deep
classification system so we can basically define it as , plasmodium is a
spore forming parasitic protozoan which is present in multicellular
organisation in myxomycota while being slimy like amoeba.

4. 

5. 
▪Talking specifically about the division myxomycota, the features which should be
given absolute attention are:-
Even though it falls under the fungi kingdom but it still have a great contrast with the
basic definition of a fungi because It is fungi like protistwith , amoeboid plasmodium ,
phagocytic nutrition and the absence of true mycelium .
▪More points which help us to understand the disparity are:
Cell wall: Mostly absent in vegetative stage (plasmodium), may have cellulose in spores.
Nutrition: Phagocytosis (ingest food particles like amoeba).
Body: Multinucleate plasmodium (slimy, amoeboid mass), lacks true hyphae.
Reproduction: Spores in sporangia, but not typical fungal hyphae-based reproduction

6.  Cellular nature and wall
▪They have eukaryotic organisation which includes having true nucleus and core organelles like
mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, ribosomes, and vacuoles are present, just like in animal/plant
cells.
▪Unicellular Yet Multinucleate
▪The vegetative body is not made of many separate cells. Instead, it exists as a plasmodium —
a giant, multinucleate cell formed by repeated nuclear divisions without cell division (a
syncytium).
▪Example: In Physarumpolycephalum, a plasmodium may contain millions of nuclei within one
continuous cytoplasm.
▪Physarumpolycephalum

7. 
Habitat
▪The habitat mostly contain most and warm environment to
thrive considering whichthey are most frequently found in
forest floors, on rotting logs, damp leaf litter, and soil with
high organic content.
▪Their habitats provide the necessary moisture for their
plasmodialstage, where they move and feed like amoebae.
They also occur on tree bark, mulch, and compost heaps,
where microorganisms are abundant.
▪Myxomycotaprefer humid conditions and are rarely seen in
dry, exposed areas. Their spores can disperse widely
through air, allowing them to colonize new habitats
whenever conditions of shade, moisture, and organic
nutrients prevail.

8. 
Nutrition
▪Due to its protozoan nature it stages very different way for its nutrition which is divided into
different stages which are prominently termed as :-
1)Spore stage -Slime moulds begin as haploid spores, typically dispersed by wind from mature sporangia .Spores
are hardy and can withstand unfavourable conditions.
2)Germination into myxamoebae or swarm cells –When conditions are favourable, spores germinate into
myxamoebae—uninucleate, amoeboid cells that can also transform into motile swarm cells if in moisture-rich
environments.
3)Feeding and fusion –Myxamoebae feed on bacteria via phagocytosis. Compatible myxamoebae can fuse
(plasmogamy + karyogamy) to form a diploid zygote, initiating the formation of the plasmodium .
4)Plasmodial stage (main feeding stage) –The diploid zygote grows into a multinucleate plasmodium, a coenocytic,
amoeboid mass without internal cell boundaries .This plasmodium actively moves and feeds on organic matter like
bacteria and decaying material, using phagocytosis .
5)Differentiation under stress : Sclerotium or sporangium formation –If starved or in darkness, the plasmodium
may enter a dormant sclerotium stage.
If exposed to light and stress, it forms sporangia (fruiting bodies) in which meiosis produces haploid spores .
And the cycles continues like that it could be understood inabetter way by the help of the following diagram.

9. 

10. 
Reproduction
▪Reproduction itself is a very significant topic to discuss while considering kingdom bactera
even a small degree of variation like fungi , because majority of the facts have a chance to
collide but reproduction is a distinctive feature among all of them but still it hold a
fundamental authenticity .
▪There are three methods for its reproduction
1.Asexual reproduction –This is the most common mode. It happens through spore formation.
Spores: Produced inside sporangia or sporocarps.
Germination: Spores germinate into amoeboid cells (myxamoebae) or biflagellate swarm cells
depending on conditions (moisture →flagellated form, dry →amoeboid form).
Aggregation: In Acrasiomycetes, spores release amoebae that aggregate to form pseudoplasmodium.
Plasmodium development: In Myxomycetesand Hydromyxomycetes, spores produce amoebae that
fuse to form a multinucleate plasmodium.

11. 

12. 
▪Sexual reproduction –Found mainly in Myxomycetesand Plasmodiophoromycetes.
Gametes: Amoeboid or flagellated cells function as gametes.
Fusion: Two gametes (isogamy or anisogamy) fuse to form a zygote.
Zygote development:InMyxomycetes, the zygote undergoes repeated nuclear divisions without cytokinesis
→forming a large multinucleate plasmodium.
In Plasmodiophoromycetes, the zygote develops into an endoparasiticplasmodium inside host cells.

13. 
Considering the individual classes of myxomycota we can draw several conclusion
related from its basics like structure, habitat and cell type to its genetics.
The classes are as follows:-
1. Acrasiomycetes(cellular slime mould)–Vegetative phase: Exist as independent,
uninucleate, amoeboid cells.
Plasmodium type: Do not form a true plasmodium. Instead, during starvation, amoebae
aggregate to form a pseudoplasmodium(slug-like body), held together by chemical signals
(cAMP).
Nutrition: Saprophytic –feed on bacteria, yeast, decaying organic matter.
Reproduction:
Asexual: Slug differentiates into a fruiting body; spores germinate into amoebae.
Sexual stage not well developed in many species.

14. Habitat–mainly terrestrial, in moist soil, decaying wood and dung
Example –Dictyostelium, Polysphondylium.
Recent discoveries –There is some fresh work available about Dictyosteliumwhere it is appreciated by
scientists for Simple to culture, fast life cycle, and a social-to-multicellular switch which is perfect for
studying chemotaxis, development, and cooperation/cheating. The community hub is dictyBase, the
curated genome & model-organism database. Also a new work on this subject tells us about oscillatory
signaling as developmental timer which specially tells us about the method of generating impulses
necessary for growth of sporingbodies when they are needed.

15. 
2. Hydromyxomycetes (aquatic slime mould)–Vegetative phase: Exist as a true plasmodium,
but mostly in aquatic or semi-aquatic habitats.
Plasmodium type: Plasmodium is transparent and spreads thinly in water or damp substrates.
Nutrition: Phagocytosis –engulf bacteria and organic matter suspended in water.
Reproduction: Form relatively simple sporangia or sporocarps, smaller than true Myxomycetes.
Spores germinate into amoeboid or flagellated swarm cells.
Habitat: Water films, damp tree bark, rotting wood in humid environments.
Example: Ceratiomyxafruticulosa.
They usually bloom like
mushrooms

16. 
▪Recent discoveries –there is not enough of exclusive work going around
hydromyxomycetes except considering it as part of the study of myxomycota and
where a decent amount of research is going for their plasticity towards the
environmental factors and also the study of several biomolecules (298 till now)
which are found during various phases of slime mould developmental stages .
▪We can also consider it as stepping stone for increasing our knowledge in the
bioinformatics division, material science and also development of modern
machinery used to measure and analyse their growth patterns clearly.
▪All this work can promisingly contribute towards development in pest control and
biotech.

17. 
3. Myxomycetes(true plasmodialslime mould) -Vegetative phase: Large, conspicuous
multinucleate, acellularplasmodium, often visible to the naked eye.
Plasmodium type: Brightly coloured, mobile, fan-shaped sheet of protoplasm with streaming cytoplasm.
Nutrition: Engulf bacteria, fungal spores, and organic particles by phagocytosis.
Reproduction:
Sporangia are large and complex (often stalked, colourful, macroscopic).
Spores germinate into myxamoebae or flagellated swarm cells.
Habitat: Terrestrial –decaying logs, moist leaf litter, soil.
Example: Physarumpolycephalum, Stemonitis.

18. 
▪Recent discoveries –myxomyceteshave acquired a great area for research
including the discovery of a newly found species Didymium arenosumwhichwas
discovered in the deserts of northern China, this new species features distinctive
greenish-yellow calcium carbonate crystals and wartedspores.
▪Perichaenaluteolawith 12 new slime mould found in australiain the decaying
Cactus.
▪Trichiacrateriformis,Compounds from this species—naphthoquinone derivatives
like trichione—have wide-ranging bioactivities (antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral,
etc.), making them promising leads for drug or pesticide development.

19. 
4. Plasmodiophoromycetes(Endoparasiticslime moulds)
Vegetative phase: Multinucleate plasmodium, but always inside host plant cells (endoparasitic).
Plasmodium type: Restricted to the host; not free-living.
Nutrition: Obligate parasites –absorb nutrients directly from host cytoplasm.
Reproduction: Produce zoospores with two flagella Cause hypertrophy and gall formation in infected
plants.
Habitat: Inside plant roots (especially crucifers).
Example: Plasmodiophorabrassicae(causes club root disease of cabbage).

20. 
▪Recent discoveries –it has hold great importance in biological sciences
research as it relates to a cabbage disease clubrootfor which recently a cure
has been developed which is a fungicide known as Amisulbrom(a quinone
inside inhibitor), has been tested for effectiveness against clubrootdisease in
canola (Brassica napus), particularly important in Alberta, Canada.
▪Due to growing interest in its research area new technologies are being
developed which have found extremely used for a fluorescent real-time
quantitative PCR method targeting the ITS gene region has been developed for
rapid, highly sensitive detection of Plasmodialphoromycetes. This diagnostic
tool can detect as few as 24 gene copies per reaction, making it ideal for early
disease prediction and large-scale surveys .
▪All this research may not seem to have a great economical benefits but it
certainly creates a base for indirect and crucial long term economical benefits.

21. 
Ecological benefits
1. Decomposers in Ecosystems -Myxomycota feed on bacteria, fungi, and decaying
organic matter, helping recycle nutrients back into the soil. They accelerate
decomposition and maintain soil fertility.
2. Soil Microbial Regulation -By preying on bacteria and other microorganisms, they
help regulate microbial populations in soil. This prevents overgrowth of certain microbes
and maintains ecological balance.
3. Food Web Contribution -Slime moulds themselves serve as food for small
invertebrates, linking microbial activity to higher trophic levels.
4. Indicator Species -Sensitive to habitat changes, they can indicate soil health and
forest ecosystem balance.
5. Enhancing Nutrient Cycling -Their plasmodialmovement spreads nutrients over large
surfaces, enriching microhabitats.

22. 
Economical benefits
▪1. Biotechnological Applications -Physarumpolycephalum, a common slime mould, is widely
used in laboratories to study cell motility, cytoplasmic streaming, and network optimization. Its
problem-solving ability has inspired research in computing, robotics, and artificial intelligence.
▪2. Medical & Pharmaceutical Research -Myxomycota produce secondary metabolites with
antibacterial, antifungal, and antitumor properties. potential future applications in drug
development.
▪3. Agricultural Relevance -By controlling bacterial overgrowth in soil, they indirectly support
plant health. Their study also provides insights into soil fertility management.
▪4. Educational & Research Value -Easily cultured and visually striking, slime moulds are model
organisms in cell biology, genetics, and ecology teaching.
▪5. Inspiration for Technology -Their ability to form efficient networks (like “solving” mazes) has
been applied in designing transportation, communication, and supply chain systems.

23.  Conclusion
▪We can draw several conclusions around myxomycota Put of which one could
be the unavailability of it in the NCERT textbooks which could be justified by
the fact that ncertstreat the syllabus in a abrader way and due to which it
was categorised under protistakingdom in the name of slime moulds which
partially helps us to understand its true nature .
▪Detailed observation of its nature have been found quite significant to
understand various concepts out of its nature out of which one could be
used to teach movements to micro robots in a way by following their
movement patterns which are used by them to colonise their habitat.