Portal:Fungi

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The Fungi Portal

A fungus is any member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. The Fungi are classified as a kingdom that is separate from plants and animals. The discipline of biology devoted to the study of fungi is known as mycology or fungal biology, which is historically regarded as a branch of botany, even though genetic studies have shown that fungi are more closely related to animals than to plants. Fungi reproduce via spores and grow as hyphae, mycelia, and futher specialized structures. Fungal spores are often produced on specialized structures or in fruiting bodies, such as the head of a mushroom. Abundant worldwide, most fungi are mostly invisible to the naked eye because of the small size of their structures, and their cryptic lifestyles in soil, on dead matter, and as symbionts of plants, animals, or other fungi. Fungi perform an essential role in the decomposition of organic matter and have fundamental roles in nutrient cycling and exchange. They have long been used as a direct source of food, such as mushrooms and truffles, as a leavening agent for bread, and in fermentation of various food products, such as wine, beer, and soy sauce.

Since the 1940s, fungi have been used for the production of antibiotics, and, more recently, various enzymes produced by fungi are used industrially and in detergents. Fungi are also used as biological agents to control weeds and pests. Many species produce bioactive compounds called mycotoxins, such as alkaloids and polyketides, that are toxic to animals including humans. The fruiting structures of a few species are consumed recreationally or in traditional ceremonies as a source of psychotropic compounds. Fungi can break down manufactured materials and buildings, and become significant pathogens of humans and other animals. Losses of crops due to fungal diseases or food spoilage can have a large impact on human food supplies and local economies. Despite their importance on human affairs, little is known of the true biodiversity of Kingdom Fungi, which has been estimated at around 1.5 million species, with about 5% of these having been formally classified.

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Fomitiporia ellipsoidea is a species of polypore fungus in the family Hymenochaetaceae, a specimen of which produced the largest fungal fruit body ever recorded. Found in China, the fruit bodies produced by the species are brown, woody basidiocarps that grow on dead wood, where the fungus feeds as a saprotroph. The basidiocarps are perennial, allowing them to grow very large under favourable circumstances. They are resupinate, measuring 30 centimetres (12 in) or more in length, though typically extending less than a centimetre from the surface of the wood. F. ellipsoidea produces distinct ellipsoidal spores, after which it is named, and unusual setae. These two features allow it to be readily differentiated microscopically from other, similar species. A number of chemical compounds have been isolated from the species, including several steroidal compounds. These may have pharmacological applications, but further research is needed.

First recorded in 2008 by Bao-Kai Cui and Yu-Cheng Dai in Fujian Province, it was revealed in 2011 that a very large fruit body, measuring up to 1,085 cm (427 in) in length, had been found by the pair on Hainan Island. The specimen, which was 20 years old, was estimated to weigh between 400 and 500 kilograms (880 and 1,100 lb). This was markedly larger than the previously largest recorded fruit body, a specimen of Rigidoporus ulmarius found in the United Kingdom, which had a circumference of 425 cm (167 in). The findings were formally published in September 2011, but attracted international attention from the mainstream press prior to this.

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Lactarius repraesentaneus, commonly known as the northern bearded milkcap, the northern milkcap, or the purple-staining milkcap, is a species of fungus in the family Russulaceae. It has a northerly distribution, and is found in temperate regions of North America and Europe, associated with spruce trees. Distinguishing features of its fruit body include the large orange-yellow cap up to 18 cm (7.1 in) wide, cream to pale yellow gills, and a yellow coarsely-pitted stem that is up to 12 cm (4.7 in) long and 3 cm (1.2 in) thick. Cut fruit bodies ooze a white latex that will stain mushroom tissue lilac to purple. Several chemicals have been isolated and identified from the fruit bodies that can modify the growth of plants, and the mushroom also has antibiotic activity against Staphylococcus aureus. L. repraesentaneus is poisonous, and consumption causes stomach aches.

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Credit: JJ Harrison

Armillaria hinnulea growing from a log, photographed in Mount Field National Park, Tasmania, Australia.

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Did you know?

... that the fungus Helvella corium has been found growing on caustic spoil mounds of a soda factory and on uranium tailings?
... that the fungus Helvella acetabulum resembles a cabbage leaf?
... that extracts from the elastic saddle fungus can dissolve fibrin blood clots?
... that the powdery mildew fungus Phyllactinia guttata has gelatinous filaments thought to help it adhere to leaves?
... that the "Devil's Cigar" is a mushroom found only in Texas and Japan?

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General images - show new batch

The following are images from various fungi-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Psychotropic mushroom Amanita muscaria, commonly known as "fly agaric" (from Mushroom)
Image 2Boletus edulis, also known as "cep", is an edible wild bolete found in Europe (from Mushroom)
Image 3Young Amanita phalloides "death cap" mushrooms, with a matchbox for size comparison (from Mushroom)
Image 4Onychomycosis (from Fungal infection)
Image 5Morphological diversity of fungi collected from a marine sponge species, Ircinia variabilis (from Marine fungi)
Image 6Chytrid parasites of marine diatoms. (A) Chytrid sporangia on Pleurosigma sp. The white arrow indicates the operculate discharge pore. (B) Rhizoids (white arrow) extending into diatom host. (C) Chlorophyll aggregates localized to infection sites (white arrows). (D and E) Single hosts bearing multiple zoosporangia at different stages of development. The white arrow in panel E highlights branching rhizoids. (F) Endobiotic chytrid-like sporangia within diatom frustule. Bars = 10 μm. (from Marine fungi)
Image 7The blue gills of Lactarius indigo, a milk-cap mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 8Mushrooms are considered a kind of fungal reproductive organ. (from Mycology)
Image 9Common puffball (Lycoperdon perlatum) has a glebal hymenium; the interior is white when it is young, but as it matures, the interior becomes brown containing spores (from Mushroom)
Image 10Agaricus bisporus mushroom is a cultivated edible mushroom for foods and has many names such as "champignon", " button mushroom", "white mushroom", and " portobello" (from Mushroom)
Image 11Salmon with fungal disease (from Marine fungi)
Image 12Fungi within Ascomycota form ascogonium and antheridium with trichogyne bridge (from Mating in fungi)
Image 13Pityriasis versicolor (from Fungal infection)
Image 14Amanita jacksonii buttons emerging from their universal veils (from Mushroom)
Image 15The red yeast rice fungus, Monascus purpureus, can synthesize three statins. (from Medicinal fungi)
Image 16Pennate diatom from an Arctic meltpond, infected with two chytrid-like [zoo-]sporangium fungal pathogens (in false-colour red). Scale bar = 10 µm. (from Marine fungi)
Image 17Fungi within Zygomycota form progametangia with suspensors during mating (from Mating in fungi)
Image 18Yellow flower pot mushrooms (Leucocoprinus birnbaumii) at various states of development (from Mushroom)
Image 19Amanita muscaria, the most easily recognised "toadstool", is frequently depicted in fairy stories and on greeting cards. It is often associated with gnomes. (from Mushroom)
Image 20The photochemistry of vitamin D₂ biosynthesis (from Medicinal fungi)
Image 21Ganoderma lingzhi (from Mushroom)
Image 22Oral candidiasis (from Fungal infection)
Image 23Agaricus bitorquis mushroom emerging through asphalt concrete in summer (from Mushroom)
Image 24Culinary mushrooms in a diversity of shapes and colors (from Mushroom)
Image 25Neurospora crassa life cycle. The haploid mycelium reproduces asexually by two processes: (1) simple proliferation of existing mycelium, and (2) formation of conidia (macro- and micro-) which can be dispersed and then germinate to produce new mycelium. In the sexual cycle, mating can only occur between individual strains of different mating type, A and a. Fertilization occurs by the passage of nuclei of conidia or mycelium of one mating type into the protoperithecia of the opposite mating type through the trichogyne. Fusion of the nuclei of opposite mating types occurs within the protoperithecium to form a zygote (2N) nucleus. (from Mating in fungi)
Image 26A tinder fungus, Fomes fomentarius (from Mushroom)
Image 27Ferula mushroom in Bingöl, Turkey . This is an edible type of mushroom. (from Mushroom)
Image 28Typical mating fusion of two compatible monokaryons in Basidiomycota (from Mating in fungi)
Image 29Maitake, a polypore mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 30Eumycetoma (from Fungal infection)
Image 31Group photograph taken at a meeting of the British Mycological Society in 1913 (from Mycology)
Image 32
Lichen covered rocks
(from Marine fungi)
Image 33
Diagram of a mycoloop (fungus loop)
Parasitic chytrids can transfer material from large inedible phytoplankton to zooplankton. Chytrids zoospores are excellent food for zooplankton in terms of size (2–5 μm in diameter), shape, nutritional quality (rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids and cholesterols). Large colonies of host phytoplankton may also be fragmented by chytrid infections and become edible to zooplankton. (from Marine fungi)
Image 34
Mycoloop links between phytoplankton and zooplankton
Chytrid‐mediated trophic links between phytoplankton and zooplankton (mycoloop). While small phytoplankton species can be grazed upon by zooplankton, large phytoplankton species constitute poorly edible or even inedible prey. Chytrid infections on large phytoplankton can induce changes in palatability, as a result of host aggregation (reduced edibility) or mechanistic fragmentation of cells or filaments (increased palatability). First, chytrid parasites extract and repack nutrients and energy from their hosts in form of readily edible zoospores. Second, infected and fragmented hosts including attached sporangia can also be ingested by grazers (i.e. concomitant predation). (from Marine fungi)
Image 35Agaricus bisporus, one of the most widely cultivated and consumed mushrooms (from Mushroom)
Image 36Phylogenetic and symbiogenetic tree of living organisms, showing a view of the origins of eukaryotes and prokaryotes (from Marine fungi)
Image 37Tinea corporis (from Fungal infection)
Image 38A mushroom (probably Russula brevipes) parasitized by Hypomyces lactifluorum resulting in a "lobster mushroom" (from Mushroom)
Image 39
Roles of fungi in the marine carbon cycle
Roles of fungi in the marine carbon cycle by processing phytoplankton-derived organic matter. Parasitic fungi, as well as saprotrophic fungi, directly assimilate phytoplankton organic carbon. By releasing zoospores, the fungi bridge the trophic linkage to zooplankton, known as the mycoloop. By modifying the particulate and dissolved organic carbon, they can affect bacteria and the microbial loop. These processes may modify marine snow chemical composition and the subsequent functioning of the biological carbon pump. (from Marine fungi)
Image 40There are over 100 psychoactive mushroom species of genus Psilocybe native to regions all around the world. (from Mushroom)
Image 41Morphological characteristics of the caps of mushrooms (from Mushroom)
Image 42Morchella elata asci viewed with phase contrast microscopy (from Mushroom)
Image 43
Driftwood
(from Marine fungi)
Image 44Psilocybe zapotecorum, a hallucinogenic mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 45Ling Zhi-8, an immunomodulatory protein isolated from Ganoderma lucidum (from Medicinal fungi)