Fungi Life Cycle

Introduction:

Fungi are organisms belonging to the kingdom Fungi that includes 144,000 species of organisms such as yeasts, rusts, mildews, mushrooms and so on. Fungi are the most widely distributed organism on the globe as it has medicinal properties. Fungi are found free living in the soil or water. Some of these organisms create parasitic or symbiotic relationships with plants and animals.

Fungi has been of great importance to human beings, as it produces food items like bread, cheese and wine. Fungi are found everywhere from the air, soil, river, lakes and seas to plants, animals, clothing, etc.

Let’s look at the life cycle of fungi to get a better understanding.

Life Cycle of Fungi:

The life cycle of fungi has many different patterns based on the species of the fungi. Not all fungi reproduce in the same way. While some fungi reproduce sexually, others reproduce asexually. Therefore, we are going to look at the life cycle of a fungi in asexual and sexual stage.

Sexual Reproduction of Fungi –

Spore (Haploid):

All fungi begin their life cycle in this stage. This is the first stage in the life cycle of a fungus. In the beginning, all spores are haploid which means that they have only a single copy of their entire genetic material. These spores migrate far distances through air by grabbing on to other organisms on the way. After locating a favourable living environment, they grow a bunch of root-like structures called mycelium. Nutrients are transferred through mycelium in order for spores to develop.

Mycelium (Diploid):

When the mycelium grows and develops, it might encounter another fungi. If the two fungi are compatible, a cell from each of the two mycelium fungi fuse together to form into another new single cell. These new fused cells are diploid as they have more than one copy of their genetic information.

Meiosis:

After the fungi has become mycelium, it enters the next process known as meiosis. During meiosis, a single cell splits into two cells and the genetic material from both parents gets mixed up. The produced two daughter cells do not have identical features to their parents and they do not look similar to each other as well.

Asexual Reproduction of Fungi:

• During the mycelium stage, the fungi has the choice of reproducing sexually or asexually. 
• The asexual life cycle in fungi produces mitospores, which are idectical to the parent.
• These mitospores later grow into a new set of mycelium and the entire life cycle repeats again.

Conclusion:

The life cycle of a fungi is quite complex in nature as they do not reproduce in one way, but sexually and asexually based on the environmental conditions. Due to its distinct nature, a fungus is capable of surviving anywhere and everywhere.