Mycology (from the Greek μύκης, meaning "fungus") is the study of fungi, their genetic and biochemical properties, their taxonomy, and their use to humans as a source for tinder, medicinals (e.g., penicillin), food (e.g., beer, wine, cheese, edible mushrooms) and entheogens, as well as their dangers, such as poisoning or infection. From mycology arose the field of phytopathology, the study of plant diseases, and the two disciplines remain closely related. A biologist who studies mycology is called a mycologist. For the fictional character, see Fungus the Bogeyman. ... For a non-technical introduction to the topic, please see Introduction to genetics. ... Biochemistry is the study of the chemical processes and transformations in living organisms. ... Look up taxonomy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Ethnomycology is the study of the historical uses and sociological impact of fungi, most specifically psychoactive mushrooms such as Amanita muscaria and those containing psilocybin, and can be considered a branch of both mycology and anthropology. ... From Old English tynder, easily combustible material used for starting a fire. ... medicines, see medication and pharmacology. ... Penicillin nucleus Penicillin (sometimes abbreviated PCN) refers to a group of β-lactam antibiotics used in the treatment of bacterial infections caused by susceptible, usually Gram-positive, organisms. ... Beer in the glass Schlenkerla Rauchbier direct from the cask Beer is the worlds oldest[1] and most popular[2] alcoholic beverage. ... A glass of red wine This article is about the alcoholic beverage. ... Cheese is a solid food made from the milk of cows, goats, sheep, and other mammals. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... Entheogens are psychoactive substances that have traditionally been used in a religious context, such as psilocybin-containing mushrooms and Peyote cactuses. ... The skull and crossbones symbol (Jolly Roger) traditionally used to label a poisonous substance. ... An infection is the detrimental colonization of a host organism by a foreign species. ... Phytopathology (plant pathology) is the scientific study of plant diseases caused by pathogens (infectious diseases) and environmental conditons (non-infectiousness). ...

Background

Historically, mycology was a branch of botany (though fungi are evolutionarily more closely related to animals than plants this was not recognized until recently). Pioneer mycologists included Elias Magnus Fries, Christian Hendrik Persoon, Anton de Bary and Lewis David von Schweinitz. The British Mycological Society was founded in 1896. Pinguicula grandiflora Botany is the scientific study of plantlife. ... This article is about evolution in biology. ... Drawn image of Elias Magnus Fries Elias Magnus Fries (August 15, 1794 – February 8, 1878) was a Swedish botanist born at Femsjö in Smalandia. ... Christian Hendrik Persoon (February 1, 1761 - November 16, 1836) was a mycologist who made additions to Linnaeus mushroom taxonomy. ... Anton de Bary Heinrich Anton de Bary (January 26, 1831 - January 19, 1888) was a German surgeon, botanist, microbiologist, and mycologist (fungal systematics and physiology). ... Lewis David von Schweinitz (3 February 1780 - 8 February 1834) was an American botanist and mycologist. ... The British Mycological Society is a learned society established in 1896 to promote the study of mushrooms and fungi. ...

Today, the most comprehensively studied and understood fungi are the yeasts and eukaryotic model organisms Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Schizosaccharomyces pombe. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a yeast used in both baking and brewing. ... Kingdoms Animalia - Animals Fungi Plantae - Plants Protista Alternative Phylogeny Unikonta    Opisthokonta    Amoebozoa Bikonta    Apusozoa    Cabozoa       Rhizaria       Excavata    Corticata       Archaeplastida       Chromalveolata Animals, plants, fungi, and protists are eukaryotes (IPA: ), organisms with a complex cell or cells, where the genetic material is organized into a membrane-bound nucleus or nuclei. ... A model organism is one that is extensively studied to understand particular biological phenomena, with the expectation that discoveries made in the model organism will provide insight into the workings of other organisms. ... Binomial name Saccharomyces cerevisiae Meyen ex E.C. Hansen Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a species of budding yeast. ... Binomial name Schizosaccharomyces pombe Schizosaccharomyces pombe, also called fission yeast, is a species of yeast. ...

Many fungi produce toxins, antibiotics, and other secondary metabolites. For example, the cosmopolitan (worldwide) genus Fusarium and their toxins associated with fatal outbreaks of alimentary toxic aleukia in humans were extensively studied by Abraham Joffe. Fungi are fundamental for life on earth in their roles as symbionts, e.g. in the form of mycorrhizae, insect symbionts and lichens as well as their potency in breaking down complex organic biomolecules such as wood as well as xenobiotics, a critical step in the global carbon cycle. This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... An antibiotic is a drug that kills or slows the growth of bacteria. ... Streptomycin, an important antibiotic drug produced by Streptomyces bacteria Secondary metabolism (also called special metabolism) is a term for pathways and products of metabolism that are not absolutely required for the survival of the organism. ... A cosmopolitan distribution is a term applied to a biological category of living things meaning that this category can be found anywhere around the world. ... Fusarium is a large genus of filamentous fungi widely distributed in soil and in association with plants. ... Abraham Z. Joffe (1909-2000) was Professor of Mycology and Mycotoxicology at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem. ... Meat Ants harvest Leaf Hoppers for their honey dew. ... A mycorrhiza (typically seen in the plural form mycorrhizae meaning fungus roots) is a distinct type of root symbiosis in which individual hyphae extending from the mycelium of a fungus colonize the roots of a host plant. ... Insects (Class Insecta) are a major group of arthropods and the most diverse group of animals on the Earth, with over a million described species—more than all other animal groups combined. ... For other things named Lichen, see: Lichen (disambiguation). ... Benzene is the simplest of the arenes, a family of organic compounds An organic compound is any member of a large class of chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon and hydrogen; therefore, carbides, carbonates, carbon oxides and elementary carbon are not organic (see below for more on the definition controversy... A representation of the 3D structure of myoglobin, showing coloured alpha helices. ... Trunks A tree trunk as found at the Veluwe, The Netherlands Wood is a solid material derived from woody plants, notably trees but also shrubs. ... The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged between the biosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere,and atmosphere of the Earth (other astronomical objects may have similar carbon cycles, but nothing is yet known about them). ...

Fungi and other organisms traditionally recognized as fungi (such as oomycetes and slime molds) often are economically and socially important as some cause diseases of animals (such as histoplasmosis) as well as plants (such as Dutch elm disease and Rice blast). Orders Lagenidiales Leptomitales Peronosporales Pythiales Rhipidiales Saprolegniales Sclerosporales Water moulds or Oomycetes are a group of filamentous protists, physically resembling fungi. ... Typical orders Protostelia    Protosteliida Myxogastria    Liceida    Echinosteliida    Trichiida    Stemonitida    Physarida Dictyostelia    Dictyosteliida Slime moulds are peculiar protists that normally take the form of amoebae, but under certain conditions develop fruiting bodies that release spores, superficially similar to the sporangia of fungi. ... Branch death, or Flagging, at multiple locations in the crown of a diseased elm. ... Binomial name Magnaporthe grisea (T.T. Hebert) M.E. Barr Synonyms Pyricularia grisea Magnaporthe grisea, also commonly know as rice blast fungus, is a plant-pathogenic fungus that causes a disease affecting rice, and can also infect a number of other agriculturally important cereals including wheat, rye and barley, causing...

Field meetings to find interesting species of fungi are known as 'forays', after the first such meeting organized by the Woolhope Naturalists' Field Club in 1868 and entitled "a foray among the funguses."

See also

• List of mycologists

This is a list of mycologists, or scientists with a specialisation in mycology, with their author abbreviations. ...

References

• Elias Magnus Fries, Systema mycologicum (1821) [1]
• Hawksworth, D. L. Mycologist's Handbook. (1974) Kew: U.K., CAB International.

External links

• Professional organisations
  • BMS: British Mycological Society (United Kingdom)
  • Centre for Research in Fungal Diversity (Hong Kong, China)
  • La società di micoterapia (Italia)
  • Medicinal Mushroom Society
  • MSA: Mycological Society of America (North America)
• Amateur organisations
  • Mycological Society of San Francisco
  • North American Mycological Association
  • North American Truffling Society
  • Oregon Mycological Society
• Miscellaneous links
  • Shroomtalk Mycology Forums
  • The WWW Virtual Library: Mycology
  • MykoWeb links page
  • Pacific Northwest Fungi Online Journal
  • Mycological Glossary at the Illinois Mycological Association
  • The Fifth Kingdom
  • Acta Fungorum
  • Fungi in the Tree of Life web project
  • Fungal Cell Biology Group at University of Edinburgh, UK.