The mushrooms are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Fungi, which includes more than 100.000 types of fungi, and among its common aspects it can be mentioned that they do not produce chlorophyll, they are provided with a stalk (false tissue), generally filamentous and branched, which is used to absorb nutrients from the environment, they are species of very varied size and their reproduction is generally carried out by means of spores (asexual). Fungal colonies are described as vegetative structures because they are made up of cells that participate in catabolism and growth.
They are part of the layer of decomposers, which sustain life, since by inducing the decomposition of organic beings, they allow the nutrients trapped in the tissues to circulate again in a continuous molecular reincarnation. Through its action, carbon is released into the atmosphere in the form of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen in the form of nitrous oxide (N2O) or molecular nitrogen (N2), in this process the release of minerals to the soil also occurs in the form of ions.
Common characteristics in all types of fungi
Like plants, all types of fungi are eukaryotic organisms, which means that their cell nuclei are contained in membranes. However, fungi have a combination of characteristics that places them in a separate kingdom.
Fungi are mostly multicellular and composed of long filaments, known as hyphae, have internal walls called septa, which divide them into cells, these structures usually have a central pore that is large enough to allow movement of small organelles. They are heterotrophic organisms, however they have a very particular way of acquiring their nutrients, since they only absorb food once it has been decomposed through its action into simple molecules, which cross the plasma membrane through a diffusion mechanism in which they intervene transport proteins.
A combination of characteristics related to the morphology and development of the types of fungi distinguish them from other organisms, among them we can mention:
- They probably evolved from flagellated protists.
- They have no movement, that is, they cannot move at will.
- These organisms tend to create partnerships with other agencies, example of them are lichens, resulting from associations of fungi with algae or photosynthetic bacteria. Cases of fungi that form mutualistic associations with insects are also known.
- Together with bacteria they play an important role in the decomposition of organic matter.
- Fungi carry out decomposition by secreting enzymes that decompose complex organic compounds, transforming them into simpler molecules, which can easily be assimilated by the medium.
- Warm temperatures and humidity encourage their growth.
- Fungi play an important role in the food industry, since they play a decisive role in the production of bread (yes, yeast is a fungus), they also have a role in cheese maturation processes (“the blue" of blue cheese we owe it to the action of these organisms).
Know the types of mushrooms
There are many classification criteria, however, considering a traditional criterion we can say that fungi are classified mainly considering the kingdoms to which they belong:
1. Fungi Kingdom
The species that have very defined life cycles are located in one of these four phyla: Chytridiomycota, Zygomycota, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota.
Phylum Chytridiomycota
The 700 species that are part of this stage are the only types of fungi that present flagellated cells at any stage of their life cycle, produce spores and gametes that are propelled by means of flagella. They develop several important biochemical pathways and enzymes, and possess the rest of the fungal characteristics described above. They are made up of spherical cells. Most often, they live as water molds in fresh water, on leaves, branches, or dead animals. Other species are marine, and some live on the ground. These organisms are responsible for warty scabies, a serious disease that attacks tubers.
Phylum Zygomycota
This species causes many types of soft rot in fruit and a few parasitic diseases in animals. More than 1.000 species have been identified in this category, in which the species form coenocytic hyphae and inhabit dead plants and animals, as well as any other organic matter such as manure. They also develop endo-symbiotic relationships in the digestive tract of certain arthropods.
Phylum Ascomycota
In this category are those species that live independently, there are about 30.000, and about 60.000 species, if one takes into account those that are part of lichens. These species are characterized because, unlike the rest, they show preference for their development in moisture-free environments, which is why they can be found in dry land. Ascomycetes comprise numerous fungiMost of the yeasts and various blue, green, pink, and brown molds that often grow on poorly preserved foods are in this group.
Phylum Basidiomycota
This category comprises more than 14.000 species of edible mushrooms, poisonous mushrooms, stink phalluses, and gelatinous mushrooms. The species that in colloquial language are usually called mushrooms, mushrooms or even mushrooms correspond. The mushroom is only the manifestation of a fruiting body that protrudes from the ground and that occurs during part of the life cycle of the fungus. More than 90% of the volume of the fungus can remain underground in the form of haploid mycelia of different types of union. These species in turn are subdivided into 5 subgroups:
- boletales: They include the types of mushrooms whose mushrooms have feet and hats and their hymenophore (located under the hat) is formed by tubes and pores separable from the meat of the hat. Examples of species belonging to this subgroup: Paxillus, Gomphidius, Hygrophoropsis.
- Agaricals: It includes the typical mushrooms with stem, hat, laminated hymenophore and fibrous meat.
- russulales: As in the case of agaricales mushrooms, these species have a well-defined cap and foot, plates under the cap, but the flesh is crumbly, grainy, of a consistency similar to wet chalk.
- Aphillophorales: Fungi with mushrooms of very different shapes (mace, consoles, branches) belong here.
- Gasterals: They are the fungi or mushrooms that are usually surrounded by a resistant skin or integument called periodThey usually have globular, sphere or pear shapes.
2. Kingdom Stramenopila
Phylum Oomycota
It covers the types of aquatic fungi and downy mildews, which are mostly saprophytic, aquatic or terrestrial species, however, parasitic species can also be found.
The most complex organisms of this group are established as plant parasitic organisms, which carry out their complete biological cycle in the host, in which the wind constitutes the transport mechanism for the dispersal of their spores. The species of this group, as a product of whats asexual reproduction processes, they form flagellate spores, lacking cell walls and have two flagella, one smooth whip and one bearded. For its part, sexual reproduction occurs due to oogamy, which is a type of gametangial contact type. Male gametic nuclei are transferred directly through a pore at the contact site or through a tubular extension called the fertilization tube. Once the male gamete is transported, the antherryl disintegrates, and after fertilization, one or more zygotes develop into resistance spores called oospores.
Phylum Hyphochitridiomycota
This category is constituted by aquatic, freshwater and marine fungi, parasites of algae and fungi, and in some cases by saprophytic species. They have motile cells with a single bearded flagellum implanted anteriorly, and cell walls that contain chitin, or sometimes cellulose. In these organisms there are no known mechanisms of sexual reproduction; in some cases, resistance spores are known.
Phylum Labyrinthulomycota
This constitutes a genus with few known species, and those that have been studied are usually marine species. The vegetative phase is represented by aggregated mixamebas, and for the production of asexual spores the mixamebas accumulate in different portions of the pseudoplasmodium and enlarge, to then surround themselves with a viscous layer and divide. In this way zoospores are formed. Each of these zoospores swims until it finds a host that it infects after losing its flagella.
3. Kingdom Protista
It is a monophyletic group, and by covering so many species it is impossible to establish characteristics that define or distinguish them as a whole, that is why in its definition we will make the following division according to the main "Phylum" that compose them:
Phylum Plasmodiophoromycota
Conclusion parasitic fungi of algae and plants vascular. The vegetative plasmodia can be haploid or diploid, and grows within the host's cells. In addition, they produce spores whose cell walls are mainly chitin.
Phylum Dictyosteliomycota
These species of dichthyostelid slime fungi are very common in manure, soil, and decaying plant material. They are rarely observed in nature since their fructifications are minute and the vegetative phases microscopic. The thallus is represented by a uninucleated, haploid, cell-wallless amoeba that feeds on bacteria by phagocytosis. They are characterized by the somatic aggregation of amoebae in a pseudoplasmodium.
Phylum Acrasiomycota
The members of this group are characterized by the fact that in the vegetative phase it is formed by the aggregation of individual non-flagellated cells that maintain and exhibit their phagotrophic nutrition. They can be found in humus-rich soils of fields and virgin and deciduous forests. They lack flagellate cells and their fructifications are very ephemeral.
Phylum Myxomycota
Mucilaginous types of fungi form spores, but lack cell walls and the body is a large mass of protoplasm with a volume of a few cubic centimeters that contains hundreds or millions of nuclei. they can move over substrates, like an amoeba, and digest nutrients from the substrate as it moves. This way of consuming particulate matter is not possible in true or derived fungi because their cell walls are rigid.
There is a classification that does not correspond to traditional criteria based on the coloration observed through the microscope of the fungal spores.
- Leukospore: In this group are those that show coloration between white and cream tones. Example: Lepiota, Lactarius and Cantharellus.
- Melanosporos: Black spores. Example: Panaeoulus.
- Rhodosporos: Coloring in pink tones. Example: Pluteus, Entoloma and Clitopilus.
- Ianthinosporeos: Violet color. Example: Stropharia, Hypholoma
- Chlorosporeos: Green spores. Example: Chlorophyllum.
Origin of fungi
There is evidence that the first fossil organisms with characteristics common to fungi were formed approximately 540 million years ago, corresponding to the Cambrian period.
Many are unaware of what has been the importance of fungi in the evolutionary context, However, suffice it to say that most experts consider that fungi were the starting point for the development of multicellularity, a characteristic that allowed the development of tissues and organs that constitute complex organisms such as plants and animals. In addition to this, there is data that indicates that fungi were the first organisms that came out of the waters where life was born to conquer the mainland, allowing the terrestrial establishment of plants.
The analysis of their data has been made difficult by the fact that fungi have soft bodies that do not fossilize well, however the performance of advanced studies based on the comparison of amino acid sequences of more than 100 proteins common to fungi, plants and Animals suggests that fungi appeared as a kingdom, about 1.500 billion years ago, and it is believed that the first fungi were aquatic.
In natural environments, the growth characteristics of fungi make them the most efficient colonizers, it is perhaps for this reason that their origin arises dating from a very early age on planet earth, and with the passage of time the evolution of species is has resulted in the emergence of many types of fungi, so the classification of their species it is quite widespread.