BIOL 121: Protist and Fungus Diversity Lab

What protist/fungus is this?

Protist; Trypanosoma

What disease do trypanosomes cause? Which insect transmits it?

African sleeping sickness; tsetse flies

What protist/fungus is this?

Protist; Stentor (first = motile, second = sessile/fixed

What protist/fungus is this?

Protist; Volvox

What protist/fungus is this?

Protist; Trichonympha = termite gut protist

What protist/fungus is this?

Protist; Dictyostelium

What are all the stages of the dictyostelium growth?

1. Growth —> aggregation (splat looking)

2. Mound

3. Finger

4. Slug

5. Fruiting body

6. Spores (—> amoeba)

What/how makes dictyostelium amoeba suddenly come together to form a multicellular organism?

1. Bacteria/food runs out —> starving

2. Produce/secrete cAMP —> attract to each other w/ glycoproteins

3. Aggregate —> slug

4. Cells differentiate to become different parts of fruiting body (stalk, base, apical mass w spores)

5. Spores germinate + cycle repeats

Life Cycle of Mucoromycota

1. Two mating types: hyphaes meet to make bridge

2. Gametangia: outgrowths of each hyphae have n nuclei

3. Gametangia fuse (plasmogamy) to make heterokaryotic zygosporangium = single cell w/ many n nuclei

4. Zygosporangium = becomes dormant until environment better; then nuclei fuse to become 2n nuclei through karyogamy

5. 2n nuclei —> divide by meiosis

6. zygosporangium germinates + makes sporangium that release genetically different spores, which will make new hyphae

What are lichen composed of and how do they reproduce?

Organisms that consist of one or more fungi growing in close association w/ a photosynthetic green alga;

Fragmentations of the lichen may asexually propagate the association; some make soredia, which are smaller fragments of fungus and algae that can be wind carried to new places.

Hyphae

Threadlike strands of cells that form a network

Mycelium

Group of hyphae; nutritionally active portion, often hidden part of fungi; no tissues

Heterotrophs vs Saprobes (fungi)

Heterotrophs: do not ingest their own food and instead Secrete enzymes that break down complex molecules + absorb them

Saprobes: decomposers; absorb nutrients from non-living organic material

Endomycorrhizae versus Ectomycorrhizae

Ectomycorrhizal = fungus surrounds the plant root cells

Endomycorrhizal = fungus penetrates the plant root cells

Belonging to phylum Basidiomycota, there are…

Basidia + basidiospores

Belonging to phylum Ascomycota, there are… (sexual/sacs)

Asci + ascospores

Belonging to phylum Ascomycota, there are…(asexual)

Conidiophores + conidia