Life Sciences 1

Lecture 15
October 26, 2016
Fungal Phylogeny
1. Chitinous walls
2. Hyphae
3. Regularly placed septa
4. Complex multicellular fruiting bodies
- Animals are the sister group of fungi
- Dikariya
o Phase in reproduction
o Nuclei do not fuse right away, they stay separate
The cells fuse, but the nuclei stay separate for a short
while
- Fungal groups have different reproductive structures
o Whether asexual or sexual, they produce spores
o The endomycorrizhae are known to produce only asexually
The glomeromycotta
- Fungi phylogeny is well understood due to molecular sequencing
o Before this advent, the understanding of fungi was different
- Asexual reproduction
o Some fungi might only reproduce asexually
o There is dispersal of spores
o Hyphae come up and they have sporangium, and the spores
come out
- Spores are formed in the fruiting bodies
o The fruiting bodies burst and then the spores come out
o The benefit of having the fruiting bodies above ground is to have
a farther dispersal
Above ground, spore could go farther, they can disperse
via wind
- Chytrids
o Only group with alternation of generations
o Aquatic or moist environments
o Decline in amphibian populations
Various species of frogs are thought to be disappearing due
to the pathogenic fungi
Chytrid fungus lead to habitat loss, climate change, and
pollution
- Zygomycetes
o Food molds
o Growth of mycelium
o Production of aerial spores
o Multicellular

Glomeromycetes
o Comprises the endomychorrizhae
o This fungal group cannot live independently of plant partners
o It goes inside cells of plants and forms a symbiotic relationship
o They go into soil, but they go in a tubular fashion to get nutrients
o They can only live in association with plants
They are hard to study for this reason
Scientists cannot culture them
Most plants have these in association with their roots
Dikarya
o 98% of fungi are kigaryotic
o Observable fruiting bodies
o ectomycorrhizae
Basidiomycetes
o These are the fungi most people think of
o Many different shapes and sizes
o Spores are shot out into environment
o Some rusts induce pseudoflowers to form in plants (no pollen)
Yeasts
o Single-celled
o Divide by budding
o Plant surfaces
o Sac fungi
o Animal skin and gut
Yeast infection
o Humans use them a lot
Some are parasitic
Some have the beneficial traits that humans use
Penicillium
o Asomycete
o Saprophytic mold
o Important in cheese production
o Accidentally discovered to inhibit growth of gram-positive
bacteria
Lichens
o Mutualism: Fungi and Algae/Cyanobacteria
15% of all fungal species grow as lichens
100 species of photosynthetic symbionts
o They get sugars from organisms that photosynthesize and are in
a mutualistic relationship with them
15% of all fungal species grow as lichens
ascomycotta

Symbiotic Interactions

Mutualism
Parasitism
Commensalism

Fungi and their role in the ecosystem

- Many live as mutualists
- Many important associated with plant roots as mycorrhizae
o Endomycorrhizae
Found in 80% of all land plant species
Grasslands, tropical forests, also widespread in temperate
regions
o Ectomycorrhizae
Form sheaths around the roots and go out into the soil
Form in temperate regions
- Mycorrhizae
o Enhances water and nutrient uptake
Increases plant growth
o Fungal hyphae
100 to 1000 times smaller in diameter than plant roots
o If nitrogen or nutrients are provided the plants will adapt not to
use the fungi, and the fungi will die out
o Fungi can transport compounds through their mycelium from
areas of surplus to areas of need
o They also produce enzymes that break down nutrients
- Mutualism
o Animals and fungi
o Leaf cutter ants are fungus farmers