Mycology Group 2 
Characteristics of Fungi
Eukaryotic.
Non-vascular organism which it does not have xylum and phylum like plants.
Reproduce by means of spores and disseminated by wind.
Reproduction.
Sexual spores (meiotic)
Asexual spores (mitotic)
Non motile, although a few (chytrids) have a motile phase.
Apical growth (grow at tip)
They are heterotroph that can ingest or absorbs organic carbon in order to produce energy and synthesis compound to maintain its life.
Cell wall & membrane
Saprophytes - feed on dead or decaying materials
Glycogen as food storage
Parasites - Oral thrush in baby
mutualists/symbionts - endophytes or endosymbionts
dimorphic
They are filamentous and branched somatic structures which are typically surrounded by cell walls containing chitin.
Since, fungi cell wall is chitin (a polymer of N-acetylglucosamine), it is not affected by antibiotics which inhibit peptidoglycan synthesis
membrane contains ergosterol rather than cholesterol
chemotherapeutic agents like amphotericin B and nystatin binds to ergosterol and form pores that disrupts membrane functions causing cell death
imidazole antifungal drugs and triazole antifungal agents interact with P450 enzyme 14-alpha sterol demethylase block ergosterol biosynthesis (the demethylation of lanasterol to ergosterol)
Habitat and nutrition
chemoheterotrophs
do not ingest food particles but depend on transport of soluble nutrients across cell membrane
secretes degradative enzymes into environment enabling them to live saprophytically on organic wastes
natural habitat of most fungi is soil or water containing decaying organic matter
Modes of fungal growth
Filamentous (mold-like)
have vegetative body (thallus) like mass of thread with many branches (mycelium) grows by branching or tip elongation
have hyphae (tubular cells) which are either septate (partitioned into segments but still septae are perforated so cytoplasm is continuous) or non-septate (uninterrupted by crosswalls)
Yeast like fungi
exists in population of single, unconnected, spheroid shape which generally reproduce by budding
Dimorphic fungi
especially those that causes systemic mycoses shows dimorphism (showing both yeast-like and mold-like characteristics)
conditions which affect morphology is temperature and carbon dioxide level/ concentration
has clearly defined nucleus
()
Most fungi grow as tubular filaments: hyphae.
The walls of hyphae are often strengthened with chitin, a polymer of N-acetylglucosamine
achlorophyllus
lack of chlorophyll pigment in the chloroplast in the plant cell
this make fungi incapable of doing photosynthesis
An interwoven mass of hyphae is called a mycelium.
not all fungi produce hyphae
unicellular fungi do not produce hyphae