fungal parasites, pathogens, and befical fungi: fungal diseases: unit 4, Chapter 24
Fungal plant parasites and pathogens
- Direct harm in rotting crops and food producing plants
- Plant diseases
- Powdery mildew, brown rot, root rot, stem rot, blight, canker
- Decay of stored crops
- Smuts and rusts
- Secondary effects of fungal infections - mycotoxicoses
- Ergot
- Aflatoxin
Animal and human parasites
- Ways fungi harm humans
- Mycosis: disease resulting from fungus invading tissue
- Mycotoxicosis: poisoning of humans and/or animals by fungal toxins
- Allergic reactions
- Fungal infections difficult to treat - eukaryotes - antibiotics target prokaryotic only
- Chytrid fungi and amphibian
Mycoses of humans
- A few extremely common skin mycoses
- Candida yeast infections
- Vaginal yeast infections
- Thrush
- ringworm
- General patterns
- Non many human/animal mycoses (compared to bacterial/viral infections)
- Unless you are immunocompromised!
- Skin and lungs most common locations
- Difficult to treat - antifungal drugs toxic than antibacterial drugs
- And there's not as many of them
Beneficial uses of fungi in human society
- food
- Mushrooms provide vitamin d, potassium, anti oxidants
- Molds in cheese blue cheese, brie camembert
- Fermentation -1st biotechnology patenting (asteur - brewers yeast)
- Medicine
- Antibiotics - penicillin, cephalosporin ect
- Hallucinogens lsd psilocybin
- Immunosuppressant cyclosporin
- Cholesterol controle - levostain
- Biological control
- Apply pathogens to insects pest