Fungi, Yeast, Penicillium, Economic importance of fungi, General structure of fungi, Reproduction in fungi, plasmogamy, Harmful effect of fungi
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Added: Jun 21, 2023
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STRUCTURE OF FUNGI R. NITHYA M. Sc., M. Phil., PGDCA., (Ph . D) ASSISTANT PROFESSOR IN BIOTECHNOLOGY SRI ADI CHUNCHANAGIRI WOMEN’S COLLEGE, CUMBUM . THENI DISTRICT, TAMIL NADU
Fungi Fungus (pl., fungi) is a Latin word which means mushrooms . The study of fungus is known as mycology . The fungi are evolutionary intermediates bridging plants and microorganisms. Fungi are non-vascular plants without chlorophyll. Their mode of nutrition is hetero-trophic . They live as saprophytes or parasites or symbionts .
They are found in soil, water, air and in our food stuffs .
They reproduce by means of spores. There are about 1,00,000 species of fungi. Fungi are economically useful. They are used in many ways.
At the same time, many fungi are harmful
General Structure They are eukaryotic protists . It includes yeast, molds and mushrooms . The body of fungus is not differentiated into root, stem and leaves. The body of fungus is called thallus . Hence it is included under the group Thallophyta .
The study of fungus is called Mycology and the scientists who are studying fungi are called Mycologists *. The fungi of microbiological importance are Yeast, Penicillium , Agaricus, Aspergillus, Rhizopus , Puccinia , etc.
Fungi are either unicellular or multicellular forms. The yeasts are unicellular. The moulds and mushrooms are multicellular. The multicellular fungi are in the form of filaments. Each filament of the mycelium is called a hypha .
The filamentous body is called mycelium .
The mycelium can be divided into the vegetative mycelium which grows into the medium and The aerial mycelium which projects from the surface.
The hypha is tubular in nature. It consists of cytoplasm enclosed by plasma membrane and cell wall . The cytoplasm contains nucleus .
This cytoplasm having many nuclei without cross walls is called a coenocyte
In septate hypha cross walls (septa) are present. The septate hyphae may be uninucleate or multinucleate. The septum contains pores and the cytoplasm of all the cells are interconnected .
The fungal cell is surrounded by a cell wall . The cell wall is made up of fungal cellulose , which is a form of chitin. Below the cell wall there is a plasma membrane. The plasma membrane encloses the protoplasm
The protoplasm contains cell organelles and cell inclusions . The organelles includes Golgi apparatus, mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, vacuoles , etc. The inclusions include glycogen, oil droplets, pigments , etc. Fungi are sedentary(inactive) and they are immobile .
However, motile cells appear in their life cycles . The motile cells have flagella . Each flagellum has a central axoneme and a cytoplas mic sheath. The axoneme has 9+2 fibrils .
The nutrition in fungus is heterotrophic . They live as saprophytes or parasites or symbionts Lichen is a symbiont . It is an association of fungus and alga .
Reproduction occurs by asexual and sexual methods. The asexual occurs by fragmentation or budding or sporulation . In frag-mentation , a small piece of hypha develops into a whole fungus.
Budding is common in yeast.
Sporulation is the production of spores . The asexual spores may be conidia or aleuriospores or arthrospore or chlamydospore or blastospore or sporangiospore . Sexual reproduction occurs by producing haploid spores such as, zygospores or ascospores or basidiospores.
In higher fungi such as, mushroom, the spores are located on a specialised structure called fruiting body .
Yeasts Yeasts are unicellular fungi. Saccharomyces is the commonly found yeast. It is haploid . It is commonly called baker's yeast or brewer's yeast because it is commonly used in making bread , cakes, beers, wines, etc. It lives saprophytically in or on sugary solution, ripe fruits, decaying vegetables , etc. It also occurs in the soil
It is microscopic and unicellular. The thallus has no mycelium. It is made up of a single cell . It is oval in shape. The cell is covered by an outer cell wall and an inner plasma membrane. The plasma membrane encloses the protoplast. The protoplast is made up of cytoplasm and nucleus
The cytoplasm contains mitochondria, Golgi apparatus, ribosomes, endoplasmic reticulum, etc. A large vacuole is found in the center of the mature yeast . The vacuole contains water, lipid granules , etc The nucleus is haploid. It reproduces asexually and sexually. Asexual reproduction occurs by budding and fission , Sexual reproduction occurs by the union of two mature cells. It is called conjugation
Sexual reproduction occurs by conjugation. During conjugation, two haploid cells come together . A conjugation canal is formed between them. The two haploid nuclei of the two yeasts fuse together to form a diploid zygote . It undergoes reduction division to form eight haploid nuclei . Each haploid nucleus develops into an ascospore . The ascospore germinates into a haploid yeast .
Yeasts are used in the following ways They are used for alcohol production . Alcohol is produced by alcoholic fermenta-tion . The process of the oxidation of sugar into alcohol and carbon-di-oxide under anaerobic conditions is called alcoholic fermentation . It is possible because yeast secretes an called zymase . It is used in the preparation of ethyl alcohol, glycerol, ethers, fatty acids, acetic acid, succinic acid, etc . Yeasts are used along with starch to prepare yeast cakes . Vitamin B, is prepared from yeast cultures.
Penicillium Penicillium is a fungus. It is commonly called green mold because the conidia are green in colour. It is haploid. The body of Penicillium is called thallus . It is filamentous. The filamentous body is called mycelium . The filaments are called hyphae . They are septate . There are horizontal and vertical hyphae . The horizontal hyphae are vegetative hyphae. The vertical branches bear conidia and hence are called conidiophores .
It reproduces vegetatively by fragmentation asexually by conidia and sexually by plas-mogamy . In fragmentation, the mycelium breaks into small pieces and each piece grows into a Penicillium The conidia are spherical bodies developed at the tip of vertical hypha. They are dispersed by wind and each conidium germinates into a mycelium .
Asexual reproduction by conidia formation
Sexual reproduction occurs by plasmogamy . In plasmogamy , the cytoplasm and nuclei of male sex organ and female sex organ fuse together. The plasmogamy produces a hypha with double nuclear called dikaryon . The dikaryon cells divide to form ascogenous hypha . It produces ascus . The ascus undergoes reduction division to produce 8 ascospores . The ascospores are haploid . They germinate into Penicillium .
Plasmogamy .
Economic Importance of Penicillium Many species of Penicillium are capable of producing organic acids such as citric acid, fumaric acid, Oxalic acid, gluconic acid and gallic acid.
Penicillium camemberti and Penicillium roqueforti are used in cheese making.
Penicillium patulum is used in the production of gentisyle alcohol.
Some species of Penicillium produce certain antibiotics . These antibiotics are used to treat infectious diseases caused by aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in man and animals
Harmful effect of Penicillium Some species destroy leather and fabrics .
Many species of Penicillium attack and destroy fruits
Penicillium digitatum , Penicillium glaucum and Penicillium expansum spoil the prepared foods.
Penicillium divaricatum destroy furnitures and woods.
Some species of Penicillium cause Penicillosis in man and animals.