is basidiomycota harmful

Full Answer

What is Basidiomycota and why is it important?

The Basidiomycota also contain perhaps the most important plant pathogens, the rusts and the smuts. These fungi do not produce macroscopic fruiting bodies, but instead bear their spores on the stems, leaves, and flowers of host plants. However, remember that the mycelium is internal and “sucks” the nutrients out of the plant.

What are the subphyla of Basidiomycota?

Basidiomycota includes three subphyla: Ustilaginomycotina (smuts), Pucciniomycotina (rusts), and Agaricomycotina, the traditional hymenomycetes or basidiomycetes, for example, mushrooms, bracket fungi, and corticoid fungi with large fruiting bodies. Thomas N. Taylor, ... Edith L. Taylor, in Fossil Fungi, 2015

What are some examples of toxins produced by Basidiomycota?

Other "toxins" produced by Basidiomycota include hallucinogens, which are produced by members of the genus Psilocybe (and other groups). Species of Psilocybe have traditionally been used in Central American indigenous cultures as a spiritual tool, and are now cultivated for the illicit drug trade.

Are basidiospores harmful to humans?

If inhaled in significant amounts, Basidiospores can lead to serious health issues. Most issues are associated with the respiratory tract. Basidiospores have been reported in cases of allergic bronchopulmonary mycosis, allergic fungal rhinosinusitis and fungus associated chronic cough [5].

Are basidiomycetes harmful?

A number of basidiomycete fungi have been reported recently as agents of human infection or as agents of hypersensitivity and allergic reactions.

Are basidiospores harmful to humans?

Are Basidiospores dangerous? If inhaled in significant amounts, Basidiospores can lead to serious health issues. Most issues are associated with the respiratory tract. Basidiospores have been reported in cases of allergic bronchopulmonary mycosis, allergic fungal rhinosinusitis and fungus associated chronic cough [5].

What kind of diseases are caused by basidiomycetes?

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Can you eat basidiomycetes?

Specifically in the context of human use, the basidiomycetes are a highly valuable food source and are increasingly medicinally important.

Can basidiospores make you sick?

However, spores that grow into large colonies can be dangerous and in some cases, deadly. The possible ailments from basidiospores range from a number of mild to severe symptoms, including: Pneumonia-like symptoms. Cryptococcal meningitis (an infection of the lining of the spinal cord and brain)

Do basidiospores produce mycotoxins?

Mycotoxins Produced by Basidiospore Poisoning (toxicosis) is usually attributable to ingestion of mushrooms that produce the toxins. The potential toxin production is determined by individual species of this genus.

How are basidiomycetes used?

Humans exploit this in mushroom gathering and cultivation. The wood rotting ability of basidiomycetes is exploited in waste composting, and potentially for biofuel production from woody waste. Basidiomycetes produce a very large array of bioactive metabolites.

What are basidiomycetes commonly called?

Basidiomycetes are commonly known as club fungi.

Why are the basidiomycetes considered the most advanced among the fungi?

As a group, the basidiomycota have some highly characteristic features, which separate them from other fungi. They are the most evolutionarily advanced fungi, and even their hyphae have a dinstinctly "cellular" composition. This point is best illustrated by the life cycle below.

What are examples of Basidiomycota?

Flammulina filiformisShiitakeChaga mushroomMatsutakeChicken of the woodsAgaricus bisporusBasidiomycetes/Lower classifications

How do you identify Basidiomycota?

A feature used to identify Basidiomycota, aside from the presence of basidia, is the degree of separation between individual cells. Basidiomycota have more septate hyphae than Zygomycota, though their septae are perforated, allowing cytoplasm to flow freely between cells.

Which fungi belong to Basidiomycetes?

Basidiomycota, large and diverse phylum of fungi (kingdom Fungi) that includes jelly and shelf fungi; mushrooms, puffballs, and stinkhorns; certain yeasts; and the rusts and smuts. Basidiomycota are typically filamentous fungi composed of hyphae.

What is the difference between Ascospores and basidiospores?

Basidium is a club-shaped structure having sexual cells that produce sexual spores. The sexual cells produced are called Ascospores. The sexual spores produced are called basidiospores. The ascus is a reproductive structure and is characteristic of Ascomycetes.

What will the basidiospores give rise to?

Once germinated, basidiospores give rise to monokaryotic mycelia containing one nucleus per cell.

What is the function of basidiospores?

Most basidiospores are forcibly discharged, and are thus considered ballistospores. These spores serve as the main air dispersal units for the fungi. The spores are released during periods of high humidity and generally have a night-time or pre-dawn peak concentration in the atmosphere.

Where do you find basidiospores?

Basidiospores can be found anywhere and spread via wind. Concentrations are typically high in the background, as non-dangerous basidiospores are common outdoors. One common pathogen that is often grouped with the basidiospores is C. neoformans.

How are basidiomycota recognized?

Basidiomycota that reproduce asexually (discussed below) can typically be recognized as members of this division by gross similarity to others, by the formation of a distinctive anatomical feature (the clamp connection ), cell wall components, and definitively by phylogenetic molecular analysis of DNA sequence data.

What are the subphyla of the basidiomycota?

A recent classification adopted by a coalition of 67 mycologists recognizes three subphyla ( Pucciniomycotina, Ustilaginomycotina, Agaricomycotina) and two other class level taxa ( Wallemiomycetes, Entorrhizomycetes) outside of these, among the Basidiomycota. As now classified, the subphyla join and also cut across various obsolete taxonomic groups ...

What is the genus of pucciniomycotina?

Pucciniomycotina. The Pucciniomycotina include the rust fungi, the insect parasitic/symbiotic genus Septobasidium, a former group of smut fungi (in the Microbotryomycetes, which includes mirror yeasts), and a mixture of odd, infrequently seen, or seldom recognized fungi, often parasitic on plants. The eight classes in the Pucciniomycotina are ...

How many spored basidia does a button mushroom have?

For example, the chanterelle genus Craterellus often has six-spored basidia, while some corticioid Sistotrema species can have two-, four-, six-, or eight-spored basidia, and the cultivated button mushroom, Agaricus bisporus. can have one-, two-, three- or four-spored basidia under some circumstances.

What are the three classes of Agaricomycotina?

The three classes in the Agaricomycotina are the Agaricomycetes, the Dacrymycetes, and the Tremellomycetes. The class Wallemiomycetes is not yet placed in a subdivision, but recent genomic evidence suggests that it is a sister group of Agaricomycotina.

What are some examples of fungi with anamorphs?

The dimorphic Basidiomycota with yeast stages and the pleiomorphic rusts are examples of fungi with anamorphs, which are the asexual stages. Some Basidiomycota are only known as anamorphs. Many are yeasts, collectively called basidiomycetous yeasts to differentiate them from ascomycetous yeasts in the Ascomycota.

What is the name of the cell that produces basidia?

In a typical Basidiomycota lifecycle the long lasting dikaryons periodically (seasonally or occasionally) produce basidia, the specialized usually club-shaped end cells, in which a pair of compatible nuclei fuse ( karyogamy) to form a diploid cell.

What is the phylum of basidiomycota?

Basidiomycota, large and diverse phylum of fungi (kingdom Fungi) that includes jelly and shelf fungi; mushrooms, puffballs, and stinkhorns; certain yeasts; and the rusts and smuts. Basidiomycota are typically filamentous fungi composed of hyphae. Most species reproduce sexually with a club-shaped spore-bearing organ ( basidium) ...

Where are basidiomycete yeasts found?

Hungerford. Specific basidiomycete yeasts are known to be lichen symbionts, together with unrelated fungi (typically ascomycetes) and green algae or cyanobacteria. These yeasts are found in the cortex of many macrolichens.

What is the common name for bird nest fungus?

The common name bird’s nest fungusincludes species of the genera Crucibulum, Cyathus, and Nidulariaof the family Nidulariaceae (order Agaricales), which contains about 60 species. The hollow fruiting body resembles a nest containing eggs (peridioles). The peridioles carry the spores when they disperse at maturity.

What phylum is Crucibulum vulgare in?

Crucibulum vulgare, a species of bird's-nest fungi, forms egg-shaped basidiocarps and is a member of the phylum Basidiomycota.

What is a bird's nest fungus?

The common name bird’s nest fungus includes species of the genera Crucibulum, Cyathus, and Nidularia of the family Nidulariaceae (order Agaricales ), which contains about 60 species. The hollow fruiting body resembles a nest containing eggs ( peridioles). The peridioles carry the spores when they disperse at maturity.

What is a basidia?

Basidia are borne on fruiting bodies (basidiocarps), which are large and conspicuous in all but the yeasts, rusts, and smuts. stump puffball. Stump puffballs ( Lycoperdon pyriforme ), a ubiquitous fungus that grows on dead wood. When rain hits the fruiting structures, spores are released in a cloud. USDA Forest Service.

What is the phylum of fungi?

Basidiomycota, large and diverse phylum of fungi (kingdom Fungi) that includes jelly and shelf fungi; mushrooms, puffballs, ...

How does basidiomycota affect the ecosystem?

Basidiomycota have a huge impact on human affairs and ecosystem functioning. Many Basidiomycota obtain nutrition by decaying dead organic matter, including wood and leaf litter. Thus, Basidiomycota play a significant role in the carbon cycle. Unfortunately, Basidiomycota frequently attack the wood in buildings and other structures, which has negative economic consequences for humans.

What are the characteristics of basidiomycota?

Indeed, Basidiomycota are so variable that it is impossible to identify any morphological characteristics that are both unique to the group and constant in the group. The most diagnostic feature is the production of basidia (sing. basidium), which are the cells on which sexual spores are produced, and from which the group takes its name. A long-lived dikaryon, in which each cell in the thallus contains two haploid nuclei resulting from a mating event, is another characteristic feature. Finally, clamp connections are a kind of hyphal outgrowth that is unique to Basidiomycota, although they are not present in all Basidiomycota. The following description of the characteristics of Basidiomycota traces the life cycle of a "typical" species, beginning at the site of meiosis.

What are the three clades of basidiomycota?

Three major clades are strongly supported within the Basidiomycota: 1) Pucciniomycotina includes rusts (Pucciniales) and other taxa (Swann et al. 2001, Aime et al. 2006); 2) Ustilaginomycotina includes smuts (Ustilaginales) and others (Bauer et al. 2001, Begerow et al. 2006); and 3) Agaricomycotina includes mushrooms (Agaricomycetes), jelly fungi (Auriculariales, Dacrymycetales, Tremellales) and others (Hibbett and Thorn 2001, Swann and Taylor 1995, Wells and Bandoni 2001, Hibbett 2006). Monophyly of each of these groups has been supported in phylogenetic analyses of rRNA gene sequences and protein-coding genes (Hibbett et al. 2007). Similarities in the ultrastructure of septal pores and spindle pole bodies (McLaughlin et al. 1995) suggest that Ustilaginomycotina and Agaricomycotina could be sister groups, and some molecular phylogenies also support this topology. The placements of the Wallemiomycetes (a group of osmophilic molds) and Entorrhizomycetes (a group of root-inhabiting Fungi, previously classified in the Ustilaginomycotina [Bauer et al. 2001]) are particularly problematical (Matheny et al. 2006). At present, these are classified as "incertae sedis" within the Basidiomycota (Hibbett et al. 2007), but with the application of genome-scale datasets their placements may be resolved.

What are basidiomycota used for?

Humans have found diverse uses for Basidiomycota. Mushrooms, both cultivated and wild, are eaten in many countries. For the untrained, mushroom-hunting is a risky endeavor, because some Basidiomycota produce deadly toxins (Benjamin 1995). The basidiomycete toxin phalloidin (from the mushroom Amanita phalloides) binds actin, which is a component of microfilaments. Fluorescent stains that incorporate phalloidin are used by cell biologists to visualize the cytoskeleton. Other "toxins" produced by Basidiomycota include hallucinogens, which are produced by members of the genus Psilocybe (and other groups). Species of Psilocybe have traditionally been used in Central American indigenous cultures as a spiritual tool, and are now cultivated for the illicit drug trade. Other biochemical compounds of Basidiomycota that have practical uses include astaxanthin, a red pigment produced by the basidiomycetous yeast Phaffia (used to add color to farmed salmon), and certain enzymes from wood-decaying Basidiomycota that have potential applications in paper production and bioremediation (decontamination of polluted environments using biological agents).

How many species are in the Basidiomycota?

The Basidiomycota contains about 30,000 described species, which is 37% of the described species of true Fungi (Kirk et al. 2001). The most conspicuous and familiar Basidiomycota are those that produce mushrooms, which are sexual reproductive structures. The Basidiomycota also includes yeasts (single-celled forms; Fell et al. 2001) and asexual species. Basidiomycota are found in virtually all terrestrial ecosystems, as well as freshwater and marine habitats (Kohlmeyer and Kohlmeyer, 1979; Hibbett and Binder, 2001).

What type of cells do basidiospores form?

Basidiospores germinate to form hyphae (filaments) or yeast cells that are typically haploid and uninucleate. The hyphae of Basidiomycota are septate. Ultrastructural features of the septa, visible with transmission electron microscopy, have been important in developing phylogenetic hypotheses in Basidiomycota (see the Agaricomycotina page).

What is the dominant phase of the life cycle in basidiomycota?

Thus, the dominant phase of the life cycle in most Basidiomycota is a dikaryon, in which the two nuclei brought together in mating exist side-by-side in each cell (Fig. 3A). Sometimes a dikaryon can donate a nucleus to a uninucleate "monokaryon", resulting in a "di-mon" mating.

Why are basidiomycota important?

Basidiomycota are very important for the ecosystem and for humans. Ecologically, they are vital for decaying dead organic matter, including wood and leaf litter, and thus vital for the carbon cycle (Swann and Hibbett 2007).

How many species are in basidiomycota?

They also are known as basidiomycetes based on some older classifications that recognize Basidiomycetes as a class-level taxon (ITIS 2000). About 30,000 described species are placed within Basidiomycota, or about 37 percent of all described species of fungi (Swann and Hibbett 2007).

How do dikaryons maintain their dikaryotic status?

The maintenance of the dikaryotic status in dikaryons in many Basidiomycota is facilitated by the formation of clamp connections that physically appear to help coordinate and re-establish pairs of compatible nuclei following synchronous mitotic nuclear divisions. Variations are frequent and multiple. In a typical Basidiomycota lifecycle, the long lasting dikaryons periodically (seasonally or occasionally) produce basidia, the specialized usually club-shaped end cells, in which a pair of compatible nuclei fuse (karyogamy) to form a diploid cell. Meiosis follows shortly with the production of 4 haploid nuclei that migrate into four external, usually apical basidiospores.

What is basidium in biology?

A basidium is a cell in which nuclear fusion and meiosis occur prior to developing the typically haploid basidiospores. However, basidia are limited to the sexual Basidiomycota. Another characteristic feature is a long-lived dikaryon, in which all the cells in the thallus contain two haploid nuclei as a result of a mating event (Swann and Hibbert 2007). Clamp connections, a kind of hyphal outgrowth, are another unique feature to Basidiomycota (Swann and Hibbert 2007).

What is the name of the class of basidiomycota that formed hymenial layers on their fruit?

The Agaricomycotina includes what had previously been called the Hymenomycetes (an obsolete morphological based class of Basidiomycota that formed hymenial layers on their fruitbodies), the Gasteromycetes (another obsolete class that included species mostly lacking hymenia and mostly forming spores in enclosed fruitbodies), as well as most of the jelly fungi.

What is the name of the fungus that is a club shaped basidium?

The presence of basidia ("little pedestal") is one of the main diagnostic features of the Basidiomycota and is the source of the group's name. However, Basidiomycota also includes single-celled forms ( yeasts) and asexual species. Basidiomycota commonly are known as club fungi, given the club-shaped basidium.

What is the name of the phyla of fungi?

Basidiomycota. Basidiomycota is a major division (or phyla) of the kingdom Fungi, whose members typically are characterized by the presence of a basidium, a microscopic reproductive structure where sexual spores are produced. The presence of basidia ("little pedestal") is one of the main diagnostic features of the Basidiomycota and is the source ...

Overview

Classification

Typical life-cycle

Variations in lifecycles

See also

External links