How do zygomycota obtain energy

They live close to plants, usually in soil and on decaying plant matter. Because they decompose soil, plant matter, and dung, they have a major role in the carbon cycle. Zygomycota are also pathogens for animals, amebas, plants, and other fungi. They form mutualistic symbiotic relationships with plants. In addition, they form commensalistic relationships with arthropods, inhabiting the gut of the organism and feeding on unused nutrients.

However, Zygomycota can also be found in acquatic ecosystems. While Zygomycota are largely known to humans for the negative economic impact they have on fruit, they also have some practical use. For example, certain species are used in Asian food fermentations. In addition, people have used their pathogenic powers to control insect pests. Although these are largely considered terrestrial organisms, certain species of Zygomycota also form relationships with animals.

Zygomycetes are known to cause serious infections, articularly for diabetics and immunocompromised individuals.

These infections can also occur as a result of major burns or other tramatic injury. One such disease is zygomycosis. This is a rare fungal disease that occurs in humans, and can even affect the fetus. It is potentially lethal. Diven et. The symptoms of the gastrointestinal form mirror those of another disease, necrotizing enterocolitis NEC.

This often makes diagnosis of the disease difficult. Thammayya wrote case study on a form of the diesease that is an upper respiratory tract infection with a wide variety of symptoms. Some of these include epistaxis, intranasal tumor, and nasal obstruction. Thammayya's case study noted that it was the first report on this disease due to a species from North-eastern India. One research focus regarding the infections species is on how to control and treat them.

The work of -Lamaignaire et. Zygomycota are not just restricted to the biological world. The modern dance company Pilobolus, founded in , took its name from the fungus. Clark, Curtis. Survey of the botanical Phyla: Zygomycota. Epub Feb The black tips of bread mold are the swollen sporangia packed with black spores Figure 2. When spores land on a suitable substrate, they germinate and produce a new mycelium. Sexual reproduction starts when environmental conditions become unfavorable.

Each zygospore can contain several diploid nuclei. The developing diploid zygospores have thick coats that protect them from desiccation and other hazards. They may remain dormant until environmental conditions are favorable. When the zygospore germinates, it undergoes meiosis and produces haploid spores, which will, in turn, grow into a new organism. Figure 2. Asexual sporangia grow at the end of stalks, which appear as a white fuzz seen on this bread mold, Rhizopus stolonifer. The black tips b of bread mold are the spore-containing sporangia.

This ancestor diversified over time into several descendent subgroups, which are represented as internal nodes and terminal taxa to the right. You can click on the root to travel down the Tree of Life all the way to the root of all Life, and you can click on the names of descendent subgroups to travel up the Tree of Life all the way to individual species.

To learn more about phylogenetic trees, please visit our Phylogenetic Biology pages. The tree shown above is based on several phylogenetic analyses of gene sequences of nuclear small subunit SSU ribosomal DNA Lutzoni et al.

Most of the clades shown are strongly supported as monophyletic, but relationships among them are poorly resolved. Moreover, monophyly of the Zygomycota remains controversial, and it was not included as a formal taxon in the "AFTOL classification" of Fungi Hibbett et al. This page is currently being revised to reflect understanding of the phylogeny of taxa formerly placed in Zygomycota. The most familiar representatives include the fast-growing molds that we encounter on spoiled strawberries Figure 1 and other fruits high in sugar content.

Although these fungi are common in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, they are rarely noticed by humans because they are of microscopic size. Colonial growth and the taxonomically informative asexual reproductive structures Zygomycota produce are typically studied after culturing on various agar media.

Direct microscopic observation of suitable substrates is required for those species that either have not or cannot be cultured. Fewer than half of the species have been cultured and the majority of these are members of the Mucorales, a group that includes some of the fastest growing fungi. Zygomycota are defined and distinguished from all other fungi by sexual reproduction via zygospores following gametangial fusion Figure 2A,B and asexual reproduction by uni-to-multispored sporangia Figure 3A,B within which nonmotile, single-celled sporangiospores are produced.

The phylum comprises at least seven phylogenetically diverse orders. Monophyly of the phylum and interrelationships among orders are currently under intensive investigation using multilocus DNA sequence data. One other group, the Microsporidia, were previously considered protozoa, however, DNA, biochemistry, and morphology suggest these highly reduced, obligate, intracellular parasites may have evolved from a zygomycete-like ancestor Keeling Figure 2.

Sexual reproduction. A Scanning electron micrograph of gametangial fusion in Mucor mucedo. B Highly ornamented zygosporangium of Mycotypha africana. From O'Donnell Figure 3. Asexual reproduction. A Scanning electron micrograph of unispored sporangia of Benjaminiella poitrasii and B dehisced multispored sporangium of Gilbertella persicaria releasing sporangiospores.

Zygomycota are arguably the most ecologically diverse group of fungi, functioning as saprophytes on substrates such as fruit, soil, and dung Mucorales , as harmless inhabitants of arthropod guts Harpellales , as plant mutualists forming ectomycorrhizae Endogonales , and as pathogens of animals, plants, amoebae, and especially other fungi all Dimargaritales and some Zoopagales are mycoparasites.

A number of species are used in Asian food fermentations, such as Rhizopus oligosporus in the Indonesian staple tempeh, and Actinomucor elegans in Chinese cheese or sufu Hesseltine Conversely, some species have a negative economic impact on human affairs by causing storage rots of fruits particularly strawberries by Rhizopus stolonifer [Figure 1] , as agents of plant disease e. In addition to some Mucorales that attack immuno-suppressed humans, several species of microsporidia cause serious human infections.

Some zygomycetes are regularly isolated by veterinarians from domesticated animals in tropical and subtropical regions of the world, including the US gulf states. Zygomycota, like all true fungi, produce cell walls containing chitin. They grow primarily as mycelia, or filaments of long cells called hyphae. Unlike the so-called 'higher fungi' comprising the Ascomycota and Basidiomycota which produce regularly septate mycelia, most Zygomycota form hyphae which are generally coenocytic because they lack cross walls or septa.

There are, however, several exceptions and septa may form at irregular intervals throughout the older parts of the mycelium or are regularly spaced in two sister orders of Zygomycota, the Kickxellales and Harpellales.

The unique character synapomorphy of the Zygomycota is the zygospore. Zygospores are formed within a zygosporangium after the fusion of specialized hyphae called gametangia during the sexual cycle Figure 2A. A single zygospore is formed per zygosporangium. Because of this one-to-one relationship, the terms are often used interchangably.

The mature zygospore is often thick-walled Figure 2B , and undergoes an obligatory dormant period before germination. Most Zygomycota are thought to have a zygotic or haplontic life cycle Figure 4.

Thus, the only diploid phase takes place within the zygospore. Nuclei within the zygospore are believed to undergo meiosis during germination, but this has only been demonstrated genetically within the model eukaryote Phycomyces blakesleeanus Eslava et al. Figure 4. Generalized life cycle of Zygomycota. Asexual reproduction occurs primarily by sporangiospores produced by mitosis and cell division. The only diploid 2N phase in the life cycle is the zygospore, produced through the conjugation of compatible gametangia during the sexual cycle see Figure 2A, B.

Zygomycota typically undergo prolific asexual reproduction through the formation of sporangia and sporangiospores. Sporangiospores are distinguished from other types of asexual spores, such as conidia of the Ascomycota and Basidiomycota, by their development. Walled sporangiospores are formed by the internal cleavage of the sporangial cytoplasm. At maturity, the sporangial wall typically disintegrates or dehisces Figure 3B , thereby freeing the spores that are usually dispersed by wind or water.

Sporangia are formed at the ends of specialized hyphae called sporangiophores. In the model organism, Phycomyces blakesleeanus , sporangial development has been studied extensively to understand the genetic basis for various trophisms, including the strong phototrophic responses to blue light.

A unique spore dispersal strategy for the Mucorales is exhibited by the dung fungus Pilobolus , whose name literally means 'the hat thrower' see far left Title illustration. The entire black sporangium is explosively shot off of the top of the sporangiophore up to distances of several meters. Phototrophic growth of the sporangiophore facilitates dispersal away from the dung onto a fresh blade of grass where it may be consumed by an herbivore, thereby completing the asexual cycle after the spores pass through the digestive system.

Some members of the Entomophthorales e. Interestingly, species of Basidiobolus , Conidiobolus and several other genera produce a second kind of spore on a long stalk that appears to have certain morphological adaptations for efficient insect dispersal. Figure 5. Dichotomously branching sporangiophore of Thamnidium elegans Mucorales. Barron Two variant types of sporangia include sporangiola and merosporangia.

Sporangiola are simply uni-to-few spored sporangia containing between 1-to spores Figures 3A and 5. Merosporangia are elongated sporangiola with uniseriate spores usually produced from a vesicle or stalk Figure 6. Figure 6. Scanning electron micrograph of uniseriate merosporangia produced on a vesicle hidden beneath merosporangia of Syncephalastrum racemosum Mucorales.

Merosporangiferous members of the Zygomycota, however, do not form a clade, indicating that this sporangial type has evolved independently more than once within the phylum e. A unique sporangiolum type is the trichospore, a one-spored sporangiolum, produced by members of the Harpellales Figure 7 and far right Title slide , which are endocommensals living within the gut of arthropods, including terrestrial beetles and millipedes, fiddler crabs, and the larvae of many aquatic insects Lichtwardt Trichospores possess one to several basal hair-like filaments that likely aid in the attachment of the spores to debris and plants in aquatic ecosystems before they reenter the arthropod gut.

Figure 7. Photo of thallus of Genistellospora homothallica Harpellales bearing trichospores attached to the hindgut cuticle of a Chilean blackfly. Like other Fungi, Zygomycota are heterotrophic and typically grow inside their food, dissolving the substrate with extracellular enzymes, and taking up nutrients by absorption rather than by phagocytosis, as observed in many protists. The most common members of the Zygomycota are the fast growing members of the Mucorales. They function as decomposers in soil and dung, thereby playing a significant role in the carbon cycle.

Zygomycota also participate in a number of interesting symbioses. As mentioned above, the Harpellales inhabit arthropods particularly freshwater aquatic insect larvae; Figure 7 where they are attached to the chitinous lining of the hindgut.

Harpellids presumably feed on nutrients that are not utilized by the arthropod. Because they are generally assumed to neither harm nor benefit the host animal, this association is considered commensalistic. In contrast, the Entomophthorales include many insect pathogens that can cause huge disease outbreaks see center Title slide showing infected maggot fly. Some of this pathogenicity is being tapped for use in the biocontrol of specific insect pests, including periodical cicadas Bidochka et al.

A number of other Zygomycota are mycoparasitic, or parasites of other fungi. All members of the Dimargaritales only 15 species and many Zoopagales are typically obligate parasites of mucoralean hosts. Other mycoparasites in the Mucorales e.

Figure 8. Sporangia of Spinellus fusiger Mucorales parasitic on fruitbodies of the mushroom Mycena pura. Certain species of Zoopagales parasitize non-fungal hosts, such as nematodes, rotifers, and amoebae Figure 9. The Endogonales are a unique group in the Zygomycota because some members can form ectomycorrhizal associations with pine roots, while others appear to be saprobic.

Figure 9. The parasite Amoebophilus simplex Zoopagales and its amoeba host. Nutrient transfer occurs through a specialized hypha called a haustorium that enters the amoeba. The Zygomycota are thought to have diverged from the remaining fungi before the colonization of land by plants , million years ago Berbee and Taylor ; Heckman et al. Molecular phylogenetic studies place the Zygomycota near the base of the kingdom Fungi, diverging after the Chytridiomycota, the most basal fungal lineage James et al.

However, as presently circumscribed, it is uncertain whether the Zygomycota represent a monophyletic group. Prior to the use of molecular phylogenetics, the Zygomycota were classified into two classes, the Zygomycetes and Trichomycetes Alexopoulos et al.

A morphological synapomorphy for this clade is the possession of a uniperforate septum with a lenticular cavity Figure 10; Benny et al. A large-scale phylogeny of the Mucorales, using three genes and at least one member of each recognized genus, suggests that several of the largest families and the two largest genera Mucor and Absidia are polyphyletic O'Donnell et al. Figure Transmission electron micrograph of vegetative hypha of Kickxella alabastrina Kickxellales.

White line separating the upper from the lower cell is a section of the cross wall or septum. Note the lens shaped plug that lies within the septal pore lenticular cavity. From Tanabe et al. The Entomophthorales appears to be one of the most distinctive and problematical lineages of Zygomycota for two reasons: 1 SSU rDNA analyses suggest that it may be more closely related to the Blastocladiales Chytridiomycota James et al.

Phylogenetic placement of one of the most problematic species, Basidiobolus ranarum , is uncertain Jensen et al. However, this species appears to be distinct from the Entomophthorales with which it has been classified traditionally.

Although B. Basidiobolus spp. Though controversial, congruent evidence from alpha- and beta-tubulin gene phylogenies support a zygomycete origin of the microsporidia, a group of highly reduced obligate intracellular parasites of a wide variety of animals including humans Keeling et al.

Because several microsporidian species have emerged as major pathogens of immuno-compromised patients over the past two decades, this enigmatic group has received considerable attention recently by the scientific community.

Placement of the microsporidia, however, remains controversial. The common names 'pin' or 'sugar' molds are not formal taxonomic names for this group of fungi but refer to their morphological appearance or to one of the most common substrates upon which some members of the Mucorales Zygomycota grow.

Many members of the Mucorales produce unbranched sporangiophores with a sporangium for a 'head,' a structure that superficially resembles a pin, hence the common name 'pin' molds.

Many species commonly cause economically destructive rots of fruits in storage. These fruits, including strawberries and nectarines, are high in simple sugars such as glucose, thereby explaining the origin of this common name. The vast majority of Zygomycota, however, are never encountered by humans and therefore do not have common names. Alexopoulos, C. Mims and M. Introductory mycology. John Wiley and Sons, New York. Benny, G. Humber and J. Zygomycota: Zygomycetes. Systematics and Evolution.

Part A. McLaughlin, D. Springer-Verlag, New York. Benny G. Amoebidium parasiticum is a protozoan, not a Trichomycete. Mycologia Berbee, M. Fungal molecular evolution: gene trees and geologic time. Part B. Dating the evolutionary radiations of the true fungi. Bidochka, M. Walsh, M. Ramos, R. Leger, J. Silver and D. Fate of biological control introductions: monitoring an Australian fungal pathogen of grasshoppers in North America.

USA Blackwell, M. Similarity of Amphoromorpha and secondary capilliconidia of Basidiobolus. Bruns, T. Vilgalys, S. Barns, D. Gonzalez, D. Hibbett, D. Lane, L. Simon, S. Stickel, T.