Microfungi

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Microfungi or micromycetes are

mycelia of microfungi produce spores that are carried by the air, spreading the fungus.[citation needed
]

Many microfungi species are benign, existing as soil

saprotrophs, for example, largely unobserved by humans. Many thousands of microfungal species occur in lichens, forming symbiotic relationships with algae. Other microfungi, such as those of the genera Penicillium, Aspergillus and Neurospora, were first discovered as molds causing spoilage of fruit and bread.[citation needed
]

Certain species have commercial value. Penicillium species are used in the manufacture of blue cheeses and as the source of the antibiotic penicillin, discovered by Sir Alexander Fleming in 1928, while Fusarium venenatum is used to produce Quorn, a mycoprotein food product.[citation needed]

Harmful microfungi

Microfungi can be harmful, causing diseases of plants, animals and humans with varying degrees of severity and economic impact. The irritating human skin disease known as

Ascomycete fungus Magnaporthe grisea. In the built environment, the toxic fungus Stachybotrys chartarum causes damage to damp walls and furnishings, and may be responsible for sick building syndrome.[citation needed
]

Types of epidermal microfungal infections are:[citation needed]

Diversity

Within the United States, approximately 13,000 species of microfungi on plants or plant products are thought to exist. Specimens of microfungi are housed in the U.S. National Fungus Collections and other institutions that serve as reservoirs of information and documentation about the nation's natural heritage. Based on the number of species reported in the literature and those represented in the collections; the number of microfungi known in the United States is estimated at 29,000 species. In areas of the world where fungi have been well studied, the ratio of vascular plants to fungi is about 6 to 1.[2] This suggests that there may be as many as 120,000 species of fungi within the United States[3] and 1.5 million worldwide.[citation needed]

References

  1. ISBN 978-0-12-509551-8
    .
  2. ^ Hawksworth, D.L. (1991) The fungal dimension of biodiversity: magnitude, significance and conservation. Mycological Research 95, 641-655
  3. ^ "Number of species of microfungi in the United States". biology.usgs.gov. Archived from the original on September 27, 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-29.
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