Zygomycota and Glomeromycota

Elizabeth Moore‐Landecker, Rowan University, Glassboro, New Jersey, USA

Published online: July 2008

DOI: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0000381.pub2

The phylum Zygomycota is an ecologically diverse and economically important group of fungi, containing two classes, the Zygomycetes and Trichomycetes. The phylum Glomeromycota, a group of mycorrhizal fungi, is derived from the Zygomycota.

Keywords: fungi; ecology; insects; plants; humans

Figure 1. Types of sporangia formed. (a) Blakeslea trispora. Multicelled sporangium with a columella. (b) Blakeslea trispora. Sporangioles with a few sporangiospores borne on a swollen sporangiophore tip. (c) Syncephalis. Sporangiophore bearing merosporangia. (d) Detail of merosporangium. (a, b) Gaümann EA and Dodge CW (1928) Comparative Morphology of Fungi. New York: McGraw-Hill (after Thaxter) and (c, d) Gwynne-Vaughan HCI (1937) The Structure and Development of the Fungi. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (after Thaxter).
Figure 2. Stages in development of a zygospore of Sporodinia grandis shown in a median view. Nuclei are not shown. (a) Two swollen hyphal tips come into contact. (b) Septa separate gametangia from the suspensors. The gametangia fuse, and the intervening walls break down, allowing the cytoplasm to mingle. (c) The zygote continues to enlarge. (d) A thick wall develops surrounding the protoplast of the zygote. This wall lies to the inside of the original walls of the zygote seen in the earlier stage. Gaümann EA and Dodge CW (1928) Comparative Morphology of Fungi. New York: McGraw-Hill (after Keene).
Figure 3. Zygospores of Mucor mucedo (Mucorales). (a) Mature zygospore supported by two suspensors. (b) A germinating zygospore forming a sporangiophore and sporangium. Bessey EA (1961) Morphology and Taxonomy of Fungi. New York: Hafner (after Brefeld).
Figure 4. A zygospore of a trichomycete borne on a zygosporophore. From Moss ST and Lichtwardt RW (1977) Zygospores of the Harpellales: an ultrastructural study. Canadian Journal of Botany 55: 3099–3110. Copyright © 1977 NRC Research Press.
Figure 5. Rhizopus head rot on sunflower. Both watery soft rot and dried shredded tissues are visible. Reproduced with permission from Harveson RH (2007) Rhizopus head rot of sunflower in Nebraska. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension publications website.
Figure 6. A root maggot fly was attacked and killed by an Entomophthora fungus. The fungus has emerged through the abdominal wall, and appears white in the photograph. The fly is attached to a conifer needle by its proboscis. Reproduced with permission from Barron GL (2006) Mycoalbum compact disc. Mycographics, Guelph, Ontario.
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 References
    other Benny GL, Humber RA and Morton JB (2001) Zygomycota: Zygomycetes. In: Esser K and Lemke PA (eds) The Mycota: A Comprehensive Treatise on Fungi as Experimental Systems for Basic and Applied Research, vol. 7(A), pp. 113–146.
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 Further Reading
    book Bigelis R (1991) "Fungal enzymes in food processing". In: Arora DJ, Mukerji KG and Marth EH (eds) Handbook of Applied Mycology: Foods and Feeds, vol. 3, pp. 445–498. New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc.
    book Day JH (1996) "Allergic respiratory responses to fungi". In: Howard DH and Miller JD (eds) The Mycota: A Comprehensive Treatment on Fungi as Experimental Systems for Basic and Applied Research, vol. 6, pp. 173–191. Berlin: Springer.
    book Dix NJ and Webster J (1995) Fungal Ecology, 549 pp. London: Chapman & Hall.
    book Frankland JC, Magan N and Gadd GM (eds) (1996) Fungi and Environmental Change, 351 pp. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
    Henkel TW (2005) Parakari, an indigenous fermented beverage using amylolytic Rhizopus in Guyana. Mycologia 97: 1–11.
    book Isaac S (1992) Fungal-plant Interactions, 418 pp. London: Chapman & Hall.
    book Johri BN, Satyranarayana T and Olsen J (eds) (1999) Thermophilic Moulds in Biotechnology, 354 pp. Dordrecht: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
    book Magnuson JK and Lasure LL (2004) "Organic acid production by filamentous fungi". In: Tkacz JS and Lange L (eds) Advances in Fungal Biotechnology for Industry, Agriculture, and Medicine, pp. 307–340. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.
    Redecker D and Raab P (2006) Phylogeny of the Glomeromycota (arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi): recent developments and new gene markers. Mycologia 98: 885–895.
    book Steinkraus KH (ed.) (1996) Handbook of Indigenous Fermented Foods Second Edition, Revised, and Expanded, 776 pp. New York: Marcell Dekker, Inc.
    Taylor TN, Krings M, Klavins SD and Taylor ED (2005) Protoascon missouriensis, a complex fossil microfungus revisited. Mycologia 97: 725–729.
    Taylor TN, Remy W, Hass H and Kerp H (1995) Fossil arbuscular mycorrhizae from the early Devonian. Mycologia 87: 560–573.
    book Washburn RG (1996) "Opportunistic mold infections". In: Howard DH and Miller JD (eds) The Mycota: A Comprehensive Treatment on Fungi as Experimental Systems for Basic and Applied Research, vol. 6, pp. 147–158. Berlin: Springer.

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Article Title: Zygomycota and Glomeromycota
 
How to Cite close
Moore‐Landecker, Elizabeth(Jul 2008) Zygomycota and Glomeromycota. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0000381.pub2]