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 further 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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Polyozellus is a genus of fungi in the family Thelephoraceae, a grouping of mushrooms known collectively as the leathery earthfans. A monotypic genus, it contains the single species Polyozellus multiplex, first described in 1899, and commonly known as the blue chanterelle, the clustered blue chanterelle, or, in Alaska, the black chanterelle. The distinctive fruit body of this species resembles blue- to purple-colored clusters of vase- or spoon-shaped caps with veiny wrinkles on the undersurface that run down the length of the stem.

Polyozellus has had a varied taxonomic history and has been reclassified several times at both the family and genus level. The range of Polyozellus includes North America and eastern Asia, where P. multiplex may be found growing on the ground in coniferous forests, usually under spruce and fir trees. It is an edible species, and has been harvested for commercial purposes. Polyozellus multiplex contains the bioactive compound polyozellin, shown to have various physiological properties, including suppressive effects on stomach cancer.

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Marasmius rotula is a species of fungus in the mushroom family Marasmiaceae. It is commonly known variously as the pinwheel mushroom, the pinwheel marasmius, the little wheel, the collared parachute, or the horse hair fungus. It is a widespread and common fungus, and is the type species of the genus Marasmius. The fruit body is characterized by its whitish, thin, membranous cap, its long and slender but tough black stem, and widely-spaced white gills that are attached to a collar encircling but not touching the stem. The fungus grows on decaying wood and leaves. Unlike other mushrooms known to release spores in response to an internal timer, or circadian rhythm, spore release in M. rotula is dependent on rain.

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Credit: JJ Harrison

Rigidoporus laetus, a species of plant pathogen from the genus Rigidoporus, photographed Mt Field National Park, Tasmania, Australia.

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Did you know?

... that the Golden-scruffy Collybia mushroom has been placed in 14 different genera?
... that although it produces its spores on gills, the mushroom Panus conchatus is more closely related to species with pores?
... that the spring orange peel fungus infects caches of pinecones collected by squirrels?
... that the lime-green waxy cap has a limited geographical distribution, having been collected only in California and Mexico?
... that Devil's Urn is a harbinger of spring?

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General images - show new batch

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

Image 1Tinea corporis (from Fungal infection)
Image 2Typical mating fusion of two compatible monokaryons in Basidiomycota (from Mating in fungi)
Image 3Agaricus bisporus, one of the most widely cultivated and consumed mushrooms (from Mushroom)
Image 4
Lichen covered rocks
(from Marine fungi)
Image 5Ganoderma lingzhi (from Mushroom)
Image 6Salmon with fungal disease (from Marine fungi)
Image 7Fungi within Zygomycota form progametangia with suspensors during mating (from Mating in fungi)
Image 8Pityriasis versicolor (from Fungal infection)
Image 9Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, commonly known as the "flowerpot parasol", at various stages of development (from Mushroom)
Image 10
Driftwood
(from Marine fungi)
Image 11Ling Zhi-8, an immunomodulatory protein isolated from Ganoderma lucidum (from Medicinal uses of fungi)
Image 12
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 13Pennate 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 14Maitake, a polypore mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 15Lycoperdon perlatum (the "common puffball") has a glebal hymenium; when young, the interior is white, but it becomes brown containing powdery spores as the fungus matures. (from Mushroom)
Image 16Oral candidiasis (from Fungal infection)
Image 17Agaricus bisporus, a cultivated edible mushroom with various names including "button mushroom", "portobello" and "champignon" (from Mushroom)
Image 18Chytrid 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 19Close-up cross section of mushroom gills (from Mushroom)
Image 20Culinary mushrooms in a diversity of shapes and colors (from Mushroom)
Image 21Ferula mushroom in Bingöl, Turkey. This is an edible type of mushroom. (from Mushroom)
Image 22Fungi within Ascomycota form ascogonium and antheridium with trichogyne bridge (from Mating in fungi)
Image 23The red yeast rice fungus, Monascus purpureus, can synthesize three statins. (from Medicinal uses of fungi)
Image 24Amanita muscaria, a psychotropic mushroom commonly known as "fly agaric" (from Mushroom)
Image 25Morphological diversity of fungi collected from a marine sponge species, Ircinia variabilis (from Marine fungi)
Image 26Workup algorithm of fungal infection at a microbiology lab at a New England community hospital. (from Fungal infection)
Image 27Young Amanita phalloides "death cap" mushrooms, with a matchbox for size comparison (from Mushroom)
Image 28Mushrooms are considered a kind of fungal reproductive organ. (from Mycology)
Image 29
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 30Psilocybe zapotecorum, a hallucinogenic mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 31Morchella elata asci viewed with phase contrast microscopy (from Mushroom)
Image 32Morphological characteristics of the caps of mushrooms (from Mushroom)
Image 33Eumycetoma (from Fungal infection)
Image 34A mushroom (probably Russula brevipes) parasitized by Hypomyces lactifluorum resulting in a "lobster mushroom" (from Mushroom)
Image 35Agaricus bitorquis (the "pavement mushroom") emerging through asphalt concrete in summer (from Mushroom)
Image 36
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 37Coprinopsis atramentaria, commonly known as the "ink cap" (from Mushroom)
Image 38Amanita jacksonii buttons emerging from their universal veils (from Mushroom)
Image 39Group photograph taken at a meeting of the British Mycological Society in 1913 (from Mycology)
Image 40A tinder fungus, Fomes fomentarius (from Mushroom)
Image 41The blue gills of Lactarius indigo, a milk-cap mushroom (from Mushroom)
Image 42Neurospora 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 43Boletus edulis, also known as "cep", an edible wild bolete found in Europe (from Mushroom)
Image 44The photochemistry of vitamin D₂ biosynthesis (from Medicinal uses of fungi)
Image 45There are over 100 psychoactive mushroom species of genus Psilocybe native to regions all around the world. (from Mushroom)
Image 46Onychomycosis (from Fungal infection)
Image 47Amanita 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 48Phylogenetic and symbiogenetic tree of living organisms, showing a view of the origins of eukaryotes and prokaryotes (from Marine fungi)