Annual competition 2011 winning entries KS4, S3/4

fungus:
An after-dinner
roqueforti
Penicillium
and
Whenyou'reeatingyourcheese
afterdinner,didyou knowthat
biscuits
for the taste
a fungusmaybe responsible
'blue
of the cheese?!So-called cheeses'
gettheirblue
likeStiltonandRoquefort
veinsfrom a helpfulfunguscalled
peniciIIi um roqueforti.
What is the fungus? Penicillium roqueforti
'saprophytic'funguswhich lives
is a type of
in the soil.Saprophyticfungi are the largest
group of fungi. The enzymesof the fungi
convert dead or decayingmatter like dead
leaves, fallen trees or dead insects into
organic acids, carbon dioxide and fungal
biomass.
What effectdoesthe fungushaveon cheese?Whena bluecheeselikeStiltonor Roquefort
Roquefortiareaddedto fresh milk. Oncecurdshave
is made,mouldsporesof Peniciltium
formedand the cheesehasbeenmoulded,air is allowedinto the cheeseto activatethe
penicilliumRoquefortiand after severalweeks,the blue/greenveinsform that give the
cheeseits distinctiveflavour,tasteandtexture.
Where does it get its name? The fungus is named after the Frenchtown called Roquefort
where there are caveswith penicilliummould sporesoccurringnaturally. The cheesemakers
in the town discoveredthe effectof the funguson their cheese.
So,the next time you're enjoying Stilton or Roquefort,remember that it is a fungus that
gives the cheesethe great taste!
Useful information sources:
m-roqueforti
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penicilliu
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Penicillium-roqueforri/t!29tL785424331
http://cheese.about.com/odlhowcheeseismade/a/make_bluecheese.htm
Mokfrshan Ramachandran
Anandmoy Jana
What is it?
Trdmetesyersicoloris a species of rnushroom found in
temperate to subrropical forests throughout the world.
lts common name is Turkey Tail for its brighdy coloured
patterns which resemble that of a Wild Turkey.
Typically, it grows in rows or shelves'whichoverlap each
other on logs or srumps of hardwood and they are
usually found from fall to spring. Turkey Tail has been
found to have great medicinal value and is commonly
used in traditional Chinese medicine under the name
"YunZhi".
What doesit look like?
Possessing
a leatherytexrure,the fleshof thesefungi is about2 mm thick and cangrow up to lOcm
in diameter.Olderspecimens
mayhavealgaegrowingon themg"iog the fungi a greenishappearance.
However,they exist in a variety of attractivecolours.The undersideof the fungusappearscreamy
white but the upper surfacecanhavea varietyof colourssuchasblack,red,blue,green,yellow and
brown, which is why they were onceusedfor decoratinghats.The color of the fungusis dependent
on the amountof sunlight that it receives.The surfaceof the fungusis denselypackedwith pores
wherethereareabout2-5poresper millimeterof surface.
What doesit feed on and what feedson it?
The Turkey Tail fungus servesas a primary decomposerof wood
and as such feedson rwo substancesfrom the wood that it rots ,
ligrio and cellulose.Both of these substancesare derived from the
cell walls of the plant cells. On the other end of the food chain,
the rurkey tail fungus is vulnerable to being eaten by the larvae of
the Fungus Moth (Nemaxerabeilinella)and the maggots of the
Pfatypezid fly (Polyporivorapicra) wlich exist in the same
ecosvstem.
How doesit helpus?
TheTurkeyTail funguscontainsa substancecalledPSK(Polysaccharide-K)
which is usedto
Krestin.
PSK
is
protein
polysaccharide
manufacrurea drug called
a
which booststhe immune
bound
systemin cancertherapy.It is now usedin severalcountriessuchasJapanasan officialadjuvant
usedin treatingseveralcancerssuchasleukaemia,breast
againstcancer. It hasbeensuccessfully
cancer,Iung cancer,gastriccancerandcolon-rectalcancer.Addingto this,it hasbeenfound to
effectivelyreducethe sizeof tumoursin lab animals.It is now becomingincreasinglyevidentthat this
funguswill continueto improveour lives.
Bibliography
https://fungalgenomics.
concordia.calfungi/Tver.php
http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fu
ngi/aug97.html
http://en.wikipedia.orglwiki/Trametes_versicol
or
British Schoolof Brussels
MiSAC Competition
F u n n i l ye n o u g hf u n g ic a n b e a p r e t t yu s e f u it h i n g i n o u r d a y i o d a y
l i v e s ,i n w a y s t h a t m o s t d o n ' te , r e nk n o w ,f r o m m a k i n gb e e rt o
decompositioa
n n d e v e n w a s h i n go u r c l o t h e sb u t a l t h c u g ht h e y
d i f f e r e n kt i n g d o n t c L . t ss.c r r e f u i r g rs i r a : et h e s a m e
a r ei : ' a ' ^ r h o : e
i y p e o f p i g m e n i h a i u r ea l i h a v e i n o u r s k i n ,t r e i a n i n .- l V l e i a n i ins a
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C h e r n o b v lF u r r g u s ?
I n 1 9 9 9 a r o b o iv v a ss e n t o u t t o t h e n u c l e a rp l a n ti n C h e r n o b y l
r v h e r e s i n c et h e d i s a s t e ri n 1 9 8 6 .a b l a c kf u n o u sn a m e d
"Cladosporium
s p h a e r o s p e r m u mw" a s f o u n d g r o w i n go n i t s w a l l s ,
o n f u r t h e ra n a i y s i ss c i e n t i s t sd i s c o v e r e dt h a t t h e f u n g u st h e y f o u n d
t h e r ec o n t a i n e dh i g h l e v e l so f m e l a n i n .
irletanin
T h e m a l o r n u c l e a rr e a c t i o nt h a t o c c u r r e da t t h e p l a n tw a s s o b i g
i t m e a n st h a t n o o n e c a n g o a n y w h e r en e a r i t . - T h i s i s b e c a u s e
t h e i o n i z i n gr a d i a t i o ni t g i v e so f f i s v e r y p e n e i r a t i n ga n d h a r m f u lt o
l i v i n gc e l l s ,c a u s i n gm u t a t i o n si n g e n e sw h i c h c a n l e a dt o c a n c e r ,
b u t h o w e v e r ,t h e f u n g u sa p p e a r e dt o b e t h r i v i n gt h e r e .
What's haBpqnin-q?
melanin,
including
tookthreetypesof fungicontaining
Scientists
themto ionizing
in Chernobyl,
andexposed
thefungusabundani
grewup
melanin
radiation
andfoundthattheonesthatcontained
to 2.5timesfasteras a result.Thisprovesa linkexistsbetween
thefungito growfaster.
andthe melanin
enabling
the radiation
So...is this useftil?
i l a n t1 9 8 3
C n e r , r o b yr l\ u c r e a P
alone
This is stilla verynewareaof researchbutthe discovery
forthefungussuchas:
meanswholenewimplications
a
o
a
Usein space- wherethereis lotsof ionizingradiation
clothingin nuclearplants
In protective
engineering
its genesintocropsto makethem
Genetically
orowfaster.
Anotheraspectof the discoveryis its relevanceto us and how
our body usesmelaninbecauseif melanincan utilizeionizing
thanperhapsit can alsousethe longerwavelengths
radiation
of
the electromagnetic
spectrumwhicharen'tquiteso dangerous
suchas visiblelightand UV.Thiswouldmeanthatwe couldalso
be takingin radiation
and usingit as a sourceof energy.
So wheremanyotherorganismsare weak and are killedoff by
radiation,
fungisuchas Cladosporium
sphaerospermum
can not
it
use
it
to
flourish.
onlyendure but
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BSESSILIS
Kindon'
fuum
Clas
Order
Fatily
@ts
Speoes
Aso(d fonn
A ScorobBeetle
infected by the
The
Cordyceps.
beetle'sbody
tissueis
etefy
compf
replacedby the
mycelium,
fungus's
over
sometimes
seve?alweeks.The
sPoresore then
releasedfrom the
shootsonthe
beetle'sbqck.
'Cordyceps Subsessilisis o rore porositic
oscomycetefungus, thot only ottocks ond consumesScorob
Beetles. This fungus hos been discoveredin the USA but
wider distribution is not yet knowndue to its rority.
olt's osexuolform (where there is only one
Parent in reproduction) is Tolypoclodiuminflatum, which ft* more commonond is
used in medicine
oCyclosporinis derived from the osexuolform. It is isolated by
the use of enzymes,ond is o ve?Ywidely used immunosuppressont.
o Cyclosporinis used to prevent organ tronsplonts frsrn being
rejected by the body; the immunesystem of the host body
does not alwaysoccept donor orgons"
com/idI 76.htm,
Sources: http://www.danielwinkler.
http:Ilb otit.botany.wisc.edu/toms-fungil jun2006.html
org/wiki/cordyceps-subsessilis
http://en.wikipedia.