Glossary

A

Acropetal: Having the youngest conidia at the apex of a chain

Acervulus: Small asexual fruiting body resembling a cushion or blister consisting of a mat of hyphae

Appendage: Natural prolongation or projection from a part of an organism

Anastomosing: Connecting by cross-veins and forming a network

Annular: Shaped like a ring

Ascospore: Haploid sexual spore that is formed by free-cell formation in an ascus following karyogamy and meiosis

Attenuated: Become weaker, in strength, value, or magnitude

B

Basal: Located at the base of a plant or stem

Basipetal: Having the youngest conidia at the base of a chain

C

Catenulate: Arrange in a series of rings or chains

Chlamydoconidium (pl. chlamydoconidia): A rounded, enlarged conidium that usually has a thickened cell wall and functions as a survival propagule

Chlamydospore: See chlamydoconidium

Clamp connection: A specialized hyphal bridge involved with nuclear division in the Basidiomycetes

Clavate: Club shaped

Coenocytic: Multi-nucleated cell

Conidiogenous cell: A cell that gives rise to conidia

Conidiophore: A specialized hypha upon which conidia develop

Conidium (pl. conidia): An asexual, non-motile, usually deciduous propagule that is not formed by cytoplasmic cleave, free-cell formation, or by conjugation

D

Dendroid: Resembling a tree in form and branching structure

Dichotomous: Divided into two sharply distinguished parts or classifications

E

Echinulate: Set with small spines or prickles

Ellipsoid: Circular plane

Endogenous: Increasing by internal growth and elongation at the summit

Epidermal: Outer layer of the skin covering the exterior body surface of vertebrates

Exogenous: Growing by addition to the exterior

Filiform: Thin in diameter; resembling a thread

F

Fusiform: Tapering at both ends; spindle shaped

Fusoid: Somewhat fusiform

G

Globose: Having the shape of a sphere or ball

H

Haustoria: Sucklike rootlets

Hyaline: Glassy, translucent

I

Intercalary: Occurring within a hypha

J

 

K

Karyogamy: Fusion of two nuclei

L

Lateral: Part furthest away from branches

Locule: Small cavity or space

M

Meiosis: Cell division that produces reproductive cells in sexually reproducing organisms

Muriform: Having vertical and horizontal septa

N

Nematodes: Unsegmented, cylindrical bodies, often narrowing at ends

O

Obconical: Cone-shaped but attached at the narrower end

Obovoid: Inversely ovoid; roughly egg-shaped, with narrow end downwards

P

Penicillate: Having the form of a pencil

Perithecia : Small flask-shaped fruiting body in ascomycetous fungi that contains the ascospores

Phialide: Special portion of the conidiophore from which the conidia are borne

Prong: Pointed projection

Pycnidium: Flask-shaped asexual structure containing conidia

Pyriform: Pear shaped

Q

 

R

Rhizoids: Filamentous structures that attach to a substrate and absorb moisture

S

Saprophytic: Nourished on dead or decaying organic matter

Sclerotium (pl. sclerotia): An organized mass of hyphae that remains dormant during unfavorable conditions

Seta (pl. setae): A bristle or bristle-like structure

Sessile: Stalkless

Spore: A reproductive propagule that forms either following meiosis or asexually by a cleavage process

Sporangiolum (pl. sporangiola): A sporangium that contains a small number of sporangiospores. Some sporangiola may contain only one sporangiospore

Sporangiophore: A specialized hypha that gives rise to a sporangium.

Sporangiospore: A spore that is formed by a cleavage process following karyogamy and mitosis in a sporangium

Sporangium (pl. sporangia): An asexual sac-like cell that has its entire content cleaved into sporangiospores

Sporodochium (pl. sporodochia): Cushion-like mat of hyphae bearing conidiophores over its surface

Sterigmata: Small woody peg like outgrowths of the twig, bearing leaves or needles

Striate: Marked with a stripe of contrasting color

Stroma: Layer or mass of cellular tissue, especially that part of the thallus of certain fungi which incloses the perithecia

Synnema (pl. synnemata): An erect macroscopic structure consisting of united conidiophores that bear conidia terminally, laterally, or in both ways.

T

Tetrahedral: Having the form of a solid angle bounded or inclosed by 4 plane angles

Transverse: extending or lying across; in a crosswise direction

Truncate: Ending abruptly

U

Umbel: Individual stalks arise from about the same point

V

Verticillate: Forming one or more whorls (especially around a stem)

Vesicle: A swollen cell; the swollen apices of some conidiophores or sporangiophores

W

X

Y

Z