Fungi and Algae

FUNGI
During rainy season, a large number of umbrellashaped mushrooms emerge on dung-piles. Fluffy mass of tangled threads like structure with black-dots of molds is also often seen growing on bread, these mushrooms and molds are fungi.

Characteristics
1. Fungi are simple heterotrophic eukaryotes which cannot manufacture their food and have absorptive mode of nutrition (e.g. absorbed prepared food). Cell wall is made up of Chitin instead of cellulose. Some fungi are parasitic while others are saprotrophs. Parasitic fungi obtain their food from other living organisms. Saprotrophic fungi get their food from dead animals, plants, their wastes and decaying materials.

2. 3. 4. 5.

Examples: Yeast, Ustilago, Penicillium.

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.Penicillium
.Penicillium is known for its production of the antibiotic penicillin.

.Ustilago
. It is a group of fungi which cause the rust and the smut disease of cereals.

.Yeast
. A sub group of fungi which are single celled organisms and belong to genus saccharomyces is called yeast.

.Toad Stool
.A group of mushrooms which are poisonous and cant be used as food are called toadstool. These mushrooms can produce serious disorders in the metabolism of the cells of living organisms.

USEFUL ASPECTS OF FUNGI

1)

Natural and scientific Use

Saprotrophic fungi chemically break down dead bodies of organisms and their wastes into simple components. They clean the environment and also cause the recycling of nutrients.
2)

Agricultural use

Mycorrhizal fungi improve the growth production of crop plants.

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3)

Food

Some of Mushrooms and some other fungi are edible and are used in daily meals. Yeasts are used in making bread and alcohol. However, some are poisonous and popularly called as toad stool or dead stool.

4)

Medicine

some of the antibiotics for example, are also obtained from some fungi Penicillin. Penicillin is obtained from the fungus penicillium.
: Turkey tail mushroom : Useful Fungi

HARMFULL ASPECTS
1)

Food spoilage

Saprophytic fungi decompose food-stuff hence spoil food. Vegetables, fruit, bread and meat is spoiled by fungi.

Fungi and Algae 2)

Human Diseases

Some of human diseases are caused by fungi for example, aspergillosis, moniliasis, and ring worms. These diseases cause disorders of ears, lungs, skin, gums and intestines.
3)

Plant Diseases

Many agricultural crops, fruits and ornamental are destroyed by fungi. For example, rust and smut of cereal crops like wheat, rice corn etc. Phytophatora fungi cause Potato-blight which is a very serious disease .In apple it causes applescab disease. American elm trees are destroyed by Dutch elm which is a fungus disease.
4)

Goods spoilage

It also causes spoilage of leather, goods, wool, book, timber, cotton etc.

Algae
Algae are a group of simple eukaryotes in which, like plants, chlorophyll is found. They are photosynthetic autotrophy and have cellulose in their cell wall.

Characteristics
1) All the algae have chlorophyll so they are autotrophic; they make their own food by photosynthesis. 2) Their cell walls are made up of cellulose. 3) Algae are mostly marine found in the sea. While others are found in fresh water lakes, ponds, puddles, streams and rivers and they are also found in damp soil. 4) Their plant body is called a thallus without a true root, stem or leaf. 5) Algae are sometimes classified on the basis of the pigments they contain. Their green color can be masked by the presence of other pigments. 6) Their reserved food material is starch. 7) Algae have a wide variety from unicellular algae, e.g. chlamydomanas and spirogyra to multicellular large seaweeds like sargassum. 8) Previously algae were regarded as plants and were placed in thallophyta.

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Importance of Algae
.They provides food for aquatic animals and maintains the food chain in water .Brown algae are used for extraction of iodine. .Some species of algae are used for fertilizer .Diatoms are used in the manufacturing of tooth paste

Chlamydomonas
It is a fresh water alga. It is found growing in still water of ponds, pools, ditches, tanks, lakes etc. It grows abundantly in polluted water rich in organic matter and ammonium compounds.

Structure
It is unicellular, eukaryotic green motile alga. It is spherical, oval or pear shaped with pointed anterior end. It has cell wall, cytoplasm, distinct nucleus and flagella. Cell Wall is thin but firm and transparent. It is made up of cellulose and pectin compound.

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Algae:

Differences between Fungi and Algae

1. Cell wall is made up of cellulose. 2. Cells contain chloroplasts. Hence, these are green in color. 3. These are autotrophic. 4. Cells are uninucleated. 5. The reserve food is starch. 6. They contain chlorophyll and other pigments. 7. They prepare their own food. 8. They contain many nuclei.

Fungi:
1. Cell wall is made up of chitin. 2. Cells do not contain chloroplasts. Hence, these are colorless. 3. These are heterotrophic. 4. Cells or hypha is uninucleated, binucleated or coenocytic. 5. The reserve food is glycogen. 6. They do not contain chlorophyll. 7. They obtain their food from other living organisms. 8. They contain only one nucleus.

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