Question

Write short notes:

Useful Fungi

Answer 1

Useful Fungi:

A. Role of fungi in medicine:

1. Antibiotic penicillin is obtained from Penicillium.
2. Drugs like cyclosporine, immunosuppressant drugs, precursors of steroid hormones, etc are isolated from fungi.

B. Role of fungi in industries:

1. Yeast is used in bread making. It causes the dough to rise and make the bread light and spongy. It is also used in breweries or winemaking industries. Sugars present in grapes are fermented by using yeast. This results in the production of alcohol which is used for making wine.
   
2. Lichen is a symbiotic association of algae and fungi are used in the preparation of litmus paper which is used as an acid-base indicator.

C. Role of fungi in food:

1. Fungi like mushrooms are consumed as food. These are rich sources of protein.
2. Fungi genus Penicillium helps in the ripening of cheese.

D. Role of fungi as biocontrol agents:

1. Fungi help to control the growth of weeds.
2. Pathogenic fungi like Fusarium sp., Phytophthora palmivora, Alternaria crassa, etc act as mycoherbicides.