Biodiversity: Fungus Flashcards
(23 cards)
At one point, fungi were grouped with plant. Why are fungi not plants?
- Have chitin in cell walls, not cellulose
- Do not conduct photosynthesis
Are fungi multinucleate?
Yes (can have more than one nucleus in a cell)
List the following about fungi:
an example,
cell type,
number of cells,
cell wall material,
nutrition,
primary means of reproduction
Example: Mushrooms
Cell type: Eukaryote
Number of cells: Mostly multicellular
Cell wall material: Chitin
Nutrition: Chemoheterotrophic - Heterotrophs (get energy from other food sources- don’t make their own food)
Primary means of reproduction: Mostly asexual but also sexual
Are Fungi Motile?
Fungi are usually not motile (cannot move on their own)
Fungi feature Alteration of Generations - what is this?
Alteration of generations is the switching between sexual and asexual reproduction and a haploid and diploid stage
Are fungi more closely related to plants or animals?
Fungi are more closely related to animals
Explain the overall structure of fungi
- What we see in fungi is only the reproductive portion
- This includes the cap (round top), gills (underneath the top which disperses spores that form new fungi), ring (sometimes on the top of the stem), stripe (stem/stalk), volva which is the base and underneath the ground is the Mycelium made up of hyphae.
Explain how fungi reproduce (simple)
-A fruiting body releases haploid spores
-spores tend to grow in moist areas or soil
-from the spores, haploid hyphae grow out which fuse to create hyphae with two haploid nuclei
-Hyphae grow into large mycelium
-When mature the mycelium produces a mushroom cap with gills on the underside
-diploid zygotes form in the basidia on the gills
-each zygote produces 4 haploid spores (cycle repeats)
Explain Hyphae, Mycelium and fungi nutrient absorption
Hyphae are long thin tube shaped cells that grow from fungi which is crucial to the absorption of nutrients. They branch to form a network of hyphae called mycelium. EXTERNAL DIGESTION. Fungi grow next to food sources and release digestive juices breaking down matter. The hyphae then absorb the nutrients to be used as energy.
What are Fungi sexes
Fungi do not have male and female, instead having + and -
What is fragmentation?
If hyphae are broken, the pieces will grow into completely new organisms
How much spores are released by mushrooms
A large mushroom can release 100 million spores per hour
Fungi are decomposers which obtain energy by breaking down dead organic matter. What are these fungi called?
Saprobes
Some fungi live on hosts and steal nutrients without benefiting the host. What is this called?
Parasitism. An example is ringworm disease caused by a parasitic fungi.
Some Fungi are Symbionts, (symbiotic relationship) these include Lichens and Mycorrhizae. Explain the two
Lichens: consist of fungi and a photosynthetic organism like algea. Live in very harsh environments but cannot tolerate air pollution. Important food source for herbivores. The fungi supplies the Cyanobacteria or algea and supplies it with water and mineral nutrients while the Cyanobacteria or algea supplies the fungi with food
Mycorrhizae: Symbiotic relationship between plants and fungi through the roots. The fungi receives sugars, starches, proteins and lipids while the plant recieves essential nutrients as the fungi acts as an extension of the plants roots.
What are the 4 phylum?
Zygomycota, Basidiomycota, Ascomycota, Chitridomycota
Explain zygomycota
-Less than 1000 species
-include bread moulds and some plant and animal parisites
-Have multinucleate hyphae
-Reproduce asexually using spores and sexually by forming zygospore which is formed by fusing mating hyphae together
Explain chytridiomycota
-No distinction between individual cells
-Long and tubular filaments with a cytoplasm lining and a large vacuole •Single –celled with branching hyphae •Produce gametes with flagelli (hair like thing poking from back)
Explain ascomycota
-30 000 species
-mostly consist of yeast species which reproduce asexually by budding and sexually by forming an as us
-important in baking and brewing
-some are decomposers and others are parasites
Explain Basidiomycota
-Include mushrooms
-the mushroom part is the fruiting body where spores are produced
-mushroom portion is short lived
-vegetative mycelium lives in soil
-some produce posions
What is deuteromycota?
-I perfect fungi
-only vegetative and asexual phases known
When sexual phase is knows, will be moved to correct phylum
Explain how cordyceps function
-parasitic fungi
-infect an insect host and change it behaviour forcing it to climb a high stem
-the fungus then kills the host
-it’s reproductive structures grow through the body
-spores are released from a high branch dispersing it more widely
Explain fermentation using yeast
yeast cells convert cereal-derived sugars into ethanol and CO 2
