Fungi Flashcards
What are the functions of fungal spores?
Reproduction - asexual/sexual
Dispersal - structural adaptations
Survival - low water content, thick cell walls, pigmentation
What is a ‘mycelium’?
Complex, interconnected network of hyphae, grown from spores, 3D
What are germ tubes?
Specialised hyphae, emerge during spore germination, involved in colony establishment
Hyphal growth polarised
How do microtubules act in germinating spores?
Lengthen (polymerisation) and shorten (depolymerisation), regulated by different enzymes
Dynamic instability
How do motor proteins act on microtubules?
Transport ‘cargo’ along microtubules and actin microfilaments
Cargo = membranous organelles, vesicles, RNA, and protein complexes
What are the 3 types of motor proteins?
Microtubule-associated: Kinesins - 'walk' to + end Dyenins - 'walk' to - end Actin-associated: Myosins
Consist of homodimer of heavy chains and some number of light chains
Heavy chain bind to microtubule
ATP hydrolysis lead to conformational changes
What is the dominant fungal lifestyle?
Filamentous fungal lifestyle
How does possession of hyphae demonstrate uniqueness of filamentous fungi?
Non-motile heterotrophic organisms
Ability to adapt to environment
Ability to undergo morphogenesis
What are the functions of hyphae?
Exploration and resource capture Nutrient mobilisation Translocation of nutrients and water Defence of occupied substratum Reproduction Survival
Why are some septal pores unplugged in peripheral growth zone of hypha?
Allows mass transport of protoplasm towards hyphal tip
What is a Spitzenkorper?
Concentration of vesicles as well as actin, microtubules, and other proteins
Viewed as:
Vesicle supply centre
Vesicle receiving centre
Primary response element to internal and external signals
What are chitosomes?
Located in spitzenkorper core
7 different chitin synthases
Microvesicles which can each synthesise a single chitin microfibril
How are sites of chitin synthesis located?
Miroautoradiography
What are hyphal walls made of?
2-component system - microfibrils composed of chitin, amorphous matrix composed of glucans and proteins
Why are microtubules important?
Secretory vesicle transport and tip growth
Kinesin motor proteins required to maintain polarised growth
What shows actin is involved in hyphal tip growth?
Actin microfilaments concentrated in Spitzenkorper core
Actin nucleating protein, formin, concentrated in Spitezenkorper
Myosin enriched in hyphal tips
What is the proposed secretory pathway in growing hyphae?
Short distance transport of secretory vesicles and exocytosis of apical plasma membrane via actin microfilaments and myosin
Spitzenkorper = vesicle receiving and supply centre and switching station for vesicles to ‘hop-off’ microtubules and ‘hop-on’ actin microfilaments to their final destination
Long-distance transport via microtubules and dyenin/kinesin
What’s the classical view of secretory pathway in fungal hypahe?
ER -> Golgi -> Spitzenkorper
Proteins synthesised on ER, transported to Golgi
Proteins glycosylated and packed in secretory vesicles
Secretory vesicles transported to Spitzenkorper
Secretory vesicles targeted to apical plasma membrane and exocytosed
What are important functions of endocytosis?
Recycling membrane proteins and lipids
Internalisation of proteins and lipids for degradation
Internalisation of signal molecules