19+ Imperfect Fungi Examples: Detailed Facts

This Article on Imperfect fungi examples illustrates the all-around information about the 20+different Imperfect fungi, their characteristics, and classification with examples in detail.

Some fungi do not display a sexual phase, the sexual reproduction is missing, such kind of fungi known as an imperfect fungi.

Now take a look at the imperfect fungi examples in a detailed way:

Aspergillus spp.

The species of this fungi belong to the Trichocomaceae family. The main characteristic of this fungi is that it contains spore-bearing cells, conidiophore, hyphae, and septate. It reproduces asexually by using conidiospore through which it can disperse the spore and this whole process carry out via mitosis

1. Aspergillus oryzae

Due to Its evolution from wild-type relatives namely Aspergillus Niger and Aspergillus flavus, it can safely use for food processing, in the field of biotechnology for the production of industrial enzymes from it.

2. Aspergillus sojae

This imperfect fungus is widely used in fermentation industries and food products like soy sauce, Lacto fermented products, etc.

3. Aspergillus conidia

This imperfect fungus can form a long chain of asymmetric division of conidia via asexual reproduction that is also known as a fungi spore or conidium. The spore of this fungi starts to create numerous hyphae when it starts to germinate in a favorable environment like good moisture, nutrients, and warmth condition.

4. Aspergillus niger

The different strains of this species possess various sizes ranging from 900 to 1600micrometer in length. It has no more useful applications as for the industrial purposes.

Aleternaria solani

The species of this fungi belong to the Pleosporaceae family. The main characteristic of this fungi is that it produces one pattern like a spot on a leaf termed a “Bullseye” that usually occurs on older leaves and fruit areas of tomato and potato’s tuber blight. It reproduces asexually via mitosis and these fungi do have not useful applications for any process and development.

Penicillium spp.

The species of this fungi belong to the Trichocomaceae family. The fungi of this species are classified in to,

1. Penicillium griseofulvin

This fungus can produce from cereal grain, animal feed, or desert soil. The main function of this fungi is that it can produce one secondary metabolite which acts as an antifungal termed “Griseofulvin” that is used for medical purposes.

2. Penicillium chrysogenum

This fungus can be found in indoor environments or salted food products. The conidia of these fungi produce by dry-shaped conidiophores for reproduction, which are blue to blue-green.

3. Penicillium camemberti

The fungi of this penicillium species can reproduce via both sexual and asexual. As imperfect fungi, it can reproduce via a vegetative asexual process by the formation of conidiospores. These fungi are generally used in different fermented products because it is responsible for the main odor and flavor and improve the sensory properties of products.

Pcamemberti
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Tolypocladium inflatum

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Ophiocordycipitaceae. These fungi usually occur at high latitudes like in cold soils or in leaf litter. This fungus can form small, compound ascocarp and it grows white mold on the soil during the asexual stage, termed as an anamorph. It has varying use in pharmaceutical industries and medicines.

Colletotrichum falcatum

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Glomerellaceae. As imperfect fungi, it can reproduce via a vegetative asexual process by the formation of conidiospores.

Trichoderma viridae

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Hypceraceae. It produces asexually via mitosis. This fungus can produce varieties of enzymes namely, chitinases and cellulose that is useful for industrial purpose.

220px Trichoderma conidiophores 16X
imperfect fungi examples from Wikipedia

Fusarium spp.

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Nectriaceae. This fungus is widely distributed in plants and soil. The species of these fungi reproduce asexually and are widely used in making different food products and for industrial purposes.

1. Fusarium moniliformis

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Nectriaceae. It produces asexually via mitosis which produces macroconidia. It also has the capability to reproduce sexually via ascus or ascus spore. It can increase their distributions and number across the plants.

Verticillium alboatrum

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Plectosphaerellaceae. This fungus can easily be widespread in both tropical and temperate regions of the world asexually. These fungi affect the fitness of host plants and reduce the economic value and yield of the crop. In the presence of this fungi, the branches and leaves become brown and tend to roll inward.

Metarhizium robertsii

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Clavipitaceae. The asexual conidia spore of this fungi can easily penetrate inside the insect body and grow rapidly. It can grow in a white mold very fast in high humidity conditions. Those insects who live in soil or near the soil, this fungi can easily appear within or upper body of the insects.

220px Metarhizium anisopliae infected cockroach PLoS
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Beauveria bassiana

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Cordycipitaceae. This fungus reproduces asexually by the formation of very dry and powdery white spore balls of conidia as a haploid, hydrophobic, and single-celled, each ball containing the cluster of conidiogenesis cells. This fungus is widely used as a biological insecticide for insects and other pest control.

Lecanicillium lecanii.

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Cordycipitaceae. The main characteristic of this fungi is are it can produce branches of conidiophores that emerge on the upper portion of the conidiophore, it can grow easily in warm, humid environments as well as the tropical and subtropical regions.

Coleomycetes

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Sporocadaceae. These fungi form conidia in host tissue in the part of the growing cavity. It possesses disc-shaped termed as an acervulus or it has one fruiting structure which is spherical with opening at the apex which is known as a pycnidia.

Agonomycetes

These imperfect fungi act as a diasporic or anamorphic, members of the phylum Deuteromycota. These fungi considered combative species, have a complete absence of reproduction. These fungi fail to produce conidia and also lack fruit bodies, but they produce some propagules which are one somatic structure of survival that contain some bulbils and chlamydospores.

Melanconiales

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Melanconiaceae. These fungi form one superficial cavity without the formation of pycnidium or a special wall, which means the spore is present within the cavity.

Cercospora Melongenae

These imperfect fungi belong to the family of Mycosphaerellaceae. It is one deuromycete fungus that widely and rapidly spread on plants mostly on the species of all varieties of eggplants. The conidiophores of this fungi are septate, slightly flexuous, and straight typically 4 to 7 microns wide and 35 to 150 microns in length. The conidia are thicked with subacute ape and convex scar.

Cercospora Leaf Spot on Eggplant
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Classifications of Imperfect fungi

The imperfect fungi belong to the phylum of Deuteromycota, which is a part of Kingdom Fungi, but it cannot be truly called a true phylum because it is one kind of polyphyletic group where multiple species are more closely related to organisms in another phylum than to each other. The traits that have been assigned to the rest of the fungi in terms of reproductive characteristics and other taxonomy do not fit or have not been observed

The Deuteromycetes is divided into four orders,

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