Fungi scientists are endangered species

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Fungi scientists are endangered species

Budget cuts threaten research into basics that propagate life on

Earth

By Steve Connor, Science Editor

Friday, 28 November 2008

Independent - London,England,UK

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/fungi-scientists-are-

endangered-species-1038862.html

ALAMY

Mycology - the study of fungi - is no longer taught as a distinct

subject in British universities

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They give us our daily bread and beer, provide us with life-saving

medicines and recycle our waste, yet the study of fungi – life forms

that include everything from penicillin to truffles – could end

within the next 10 years in Britain.

Experts have warned that the science of identifying and classifying

the many different species of fungi faces extinction in the UK, with

less than a handful of qualified mycologists left in full-time

employment by 2011 and none at all by 2018. Mycology – the study of

fungi – is no longer taught as a distinct subject in British

universities and budget cuts have led to fewer scientists engaged in

taxonomy and systematics, the scientific classification of species.

Joan Kelley, head of mycology at the Centre for Agricultural

Bioscience International (Cabi) in Oxfordshire, said there is now no

formal training in fungal systematics and taxonomy in the UK at any

level within the education system, and this could lead to a complete

lack of mycologists in 10 years. Cabi has one of the most important

collections of fungi in Britain but even this is at risk of being

destroyed unless the Government can provide the funding as well as

the training needed to keep the science of mycology alive, Dr Kelley

said.

" There does seem to be an 'out of sight, out of mind' approach to

funding. But without fungi, life as we know it would not be

possible. Assessing ecosystems without taking into account the fungi

is like taking care of computer boxes but not the chips inside, " Dr

Kelley said.

" Yet major pieces of work continue to be published considering

ecology and climate change without any mention of fungi. "

Fungi perform two vital roles for life on Earth. They rot down the

tough lignin and cellulose of fallen trees and they form close

relationships with the roots of plants in a mutual symbiosis that

allows vegetation to survive. They also provide important sources of

food – from expensive truffles to the filamentous fungi used in

Quorn, the meat substitute – as well as medicines such as the

antibiotic penicillin and the cholesterol-lowering statins.

" We still don't have a complete checklist of fungi in Britain and we

don't know what's out there, " said , a senior

mycologist at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, who retires next

year. " We're still finding species in Britain that are new to

science, but there is a decreasing number of increasingly elderly

mycologists in the UK. Systematics and taxonomy are not seen as

cutting-edge science. Many young people think that the

classification of fungi has been done years ago. I know botanists

and zoologists are finding the same kinds of problem and it's not

seen as easily reversed. "

Some of the most damaging diseases of important food crops are

caused by fungi.

Facts about fungi: The basics of life

Life-saving fungi

Most people living in the UK owe their lives to a fungus,

Penicillium chrysogenum, the original source of the penicillin

antibiotics. Also, Tolypocladium inflatum is the source of

cyclosporin, the drug that is used to prevent rejection in organ

transplants.

Recycling fungus

Fungi are the ultimate recyclers, and are the only organisms capable

of recycling wood because of their ability to break down lignin and

cellulose. If it were not for species such as Ganoderma applanatum,

centre right, our woodlands could not exist

Valuable fungi

One of most valuable fungi is Ophiocordyceps sinensis, the Himalayan

caterpillar fungus which sells for up to £20,000 a kilo and is

highly prized in Chinese traditional medicine. But white truffles –

edible fruiting bodies of underground tuber fungi – can cost even

more

Drug-producing fungus

The fungus Monascus ruber is one of the principal sources of statin

drugs, used for lowering cholesterol levels. It also causes food

spoilage, and close relatives are used to make Oriental fermented

foods

Root fungus

Technically known as a mycorrhiza, 85 per cent of plants have fungus

growing on their roots, without which they would be unable to

thrive. The fungus actually helps the plant absorb water and

nutrients from the soil and the fungus benefits from direct access

to the sugars glucose and sucrose produced by the plant

Freezing fungi

Fungal species known as extremophiles – due to the adverse and

extreme conditions they live in – have been found in Antarctica at

temperatures well below 0C. On a recent trip to the Antarctic, more

than 450 strains of fungi were collected by the British Antarctic

Survey.

Steve Connor

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