Glomeromycota
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Archaeosporales |
Glomeromycota is a phylum within the kingdom Fungi.
It includes those species that form arbuscular mycorrhizae with plants. Originally placed in the order Glomales of phylum Zygomycota, these fungi were elevated to their own phylum in 2001 by Walker and Schüßler.
Glomeromycota are characterized by the formation of dichotomously-branching arbuscules in the roots of angiosperms, in an obligate symbiotic relationship known as a mycorrhiza (pl. mycorrhizae or mycorrhizas). Arbuscules serve as the main sites of nutrient exchange between the plant host and the fungus. Some species may also form balloon-like structures known as vesicles within host roots. The structures are thought to be for storage of fungal metabolites.
All species of the Glomeromycota are known to reproduce asexually by the formation of blastospores. Blastospore development and morphology and DNA sequence data are used to separate groups within the Phylum.
[edit] References and External Links
- Glomeromycota at the Tree of Life Web Project
- Glomeromycota at the International Culture Collection of VA Mycorrhizal Fungi (INVAM)
- Glomeromycota at the University of Sydney Fungal Biology site
- [1] 'AMF-phylogeny' web-site at the University of Darmstadt
- Schüßler, A., Schwarzott, D., and Walker, C. 2001. A new fungal phylum, the Glomeromycota: phylogeny and evolution. Mycol. Res. 105:1413-1421.
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