mycotechnology the role of fungi in biotechnology
Project points

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mycotechnology the role of fungi in biotechnology seminar points

A fungus is a member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes unicellular microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as multicellular fungi that produce familiar forms of fructification such as mushrooms and fungi. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, fungi, which is separated from the other eukaryotic kingdoms life of plants and animals.

One characteristic that places fungi in a different kingdom of plants, bacteria and some protists, is the chitin in their cell walls. Similar to animals, fungi are heterotrophs; They acquire their food by absorbing dissolved molecules, typically secreting digestive enzymes into their environment. The mushrooms do not photosynthesise. Growth is their means of mobility, except for spores (some of which are flagellated), which can travel through the air or water. Fungi are the major decomposers in ecological systems. These and other differences place fungi on a single group of related organisms, called the Eumycota (true fungi or Eumycetes), which share a common ancestor (forming a monophyletic group), an interpretation that is also strongly supported by molecular phylogenetics. This group of fungi is distinct from structurally similar myxomycetes (slime molds) and oomycetes (water molds). The discipline of biology dedicated to the study of fungi is known as mycology (from the Greek μύκης, mukēs, meaning "fungus"). In the past, mycology was considered as a branch of botany, although it is now known that fungi are genetically more closely related to animals than to plants.


For specific information about the ERC Advanced Grant, see the separate site here.

Fungal ecology in agricultural systems

There are currently a number of ongoing projects around biodiversity and the ecology of fungi in agricultural systems. These are financed by the BMBF BonaRes initiative (projects are Soil3 and INPLAMINT), and by others.

Ecological synthesis and analysis

There are a number of projects in which different members of the laboratory are involved in the re-analysis and synthesis of existing ecological data in order to obtain new ideas. A set of techniques commonly used are meta-analyzes. We also work on the development of concepts, for example the coalescence of the community.

Approaches based on the trait of fungal ecology

We are interested in applying feature-based approaches to fungal ecology, and we have participated in a series of conceptual exercises. We are using a culture collection consisting of 30 isolates to establish an appropriate model system with which to test some of these ideas.

DFG German Biodiversity Explorers

The laboratory is part of the German Biodiversity Exploration Program financed by the DFG (rapporteur: Prof. M. Fischer); In the last phase, started in 2011, the laboratory participated in three projects dealing with the diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Hempel and Rillig), soil aggregation (Rillig) and plant-soil feedback (Prof Jasmin Joshi in the University of Potsdam and Rillig). In the current phase (from 2014), the laboratory carries out a project on Sebacinales (Hempel). Exploratories are large-scale laboratories in three locations in northern, middle and southern Germany, where replicate plots are found. The objective is to discover the interrelationships between biodiversity, land use and ecosystem processes.

Ecuador: tropical mountain forest

Our laboratory offers a project on arbuscular mycorrhizae to the research platform funded by the DFG (formerly research unit 816) in southern Ecuador, a global biodiversity hotspot. The current project is to test hypotheses on the response of mycorrhiza to fertilization in tropical montane rainforest.

Soil biota and soil aggregation

We have several projects related to the process of soil aggregation, ie the formation of soil structure. We are very interested in the role of soil biota in this process, for example mycorrhizal fungi and saprobian fungi.

Communities of AM fungi and other soil fungi

We are involved in a series of projects in which we seek to understand what controls the structure of AM fungi communities or communities of other fungi. This generally involves the application of methods of molecular ecology, high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics.

Root colonizing fungi, including pathogenic fungi

Soil pathogenic fungi in natural ecosystems are poorly represented in soil and plant ecology. We are isolating and testing root colonizing fungi, including pathogenic fungi and trying to learn more about how they control plant communities in local grasslands.