''Endogone'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

fungi A fungus (plural, : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of Eukaryote, eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and Mold (fungus), molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified ...

in the family Endogonaceae of the

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military * Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

Zygomycota Zygomycota, or zygote fungi, is a former division or phylum of the kingdom Fungi. The members are now part of two phyla: the Mucoromycota and Zoopagomycota. Approximately 1060 species are known. They are mostly terrestrial in habitat, living ...

. The genus has a widespread distribution, especially in

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...

regions, and contains about 20 species. Species of ''Endogone'' form underground structures called '' sporocarps''—fruiting structures measuring between a few millimeters to in diameter, containing densely interwoven

hypha A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one o ...

e and

zygospore A zygospore is a diploid reproductive stage in the life cycle of many fungi and protists. Zygospores are created by the nuclear fusion of haploid cells. In fungi, zygospores are formed in zygosporangia after the fusion of specialized budding stru ...

s. Sporocarps are typically found in

humus In classical soil science, humus is the dark organic matter in soil that is formed by the decomposition of plant and animal matter. It is a kind of soil organic matter. It is rich in nutrients and retains moisture in the soil. Humus is the Lati ...

-rich soil or leaf mold, or in

moss Mosses are small, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic division Bryophyta (, ) '' sensu stricto''. Bryophyta ('' sensu lato'', Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryophytes, which comprise liverworts, mosses, and ...

es. Although most species will only produce spores in nature, the

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specimen( ...

''E. pisiformis'' can be made to sporulate in

test tube A test tube, also known as a culture tube or sample tube, is a common piece of laboratory glassware consisting of a finger-like length of glass or clear plastic tubing, open at the top and closed at the bottom. Test tubes are usually placed in s ...

culture when grown with

conifer Conifers are a group of cone-bearing seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single extant class, Pinopsida. All ex ...

seedlings.

Taxonomy

''Endogone'' was first circumscribed by Johann Heinrich Friedrich Link in an 1809 publication. In 1922,

Roland Thaxter Roland Thaxter (August 28, 1858 – April 22, 1932) was an American mycologist, plant pathologist, botanist, and entomologist, renowned for his contribution to the insect parasitic fungi—Laboulbeniales. His college education was completed at Har ...

revised the

taxonomy Taxonomy is the practice and science of categorization or classification. A taxonomy (or taxonomical classification) is a scheme of classification, especially a hierarchical classification, in which things are organized into groups or types. ...

of the family Endogonaceae, recognizing four genera: ''Endogone'', ''Sphaerocreas'', ''Sclerocystis'', and ''Glaziella''. In 1935, Herbert Zycha transferred the sole species of ''Sphaerocreas'' recognized by Thaxter to ''Endogone''. In their 1974 monograph of the Endogonaceae, James Gerdemann and James Trappe deviated from Thaxter’s concept of ''Endogone'', which contained taxa with

chlamydospore A chlamydospore is the thick-walled large resting spore of several kinds of fungi, including Ascomycota such as '' Candida'', Basidiomycota such as '' Panus'', and various Mortierellales species. It is the life-stage which survives in unfavourabl ...

s and zygospores, including only those species that formed zygospores in sporocarps. In the mid-1990s, Yi-Jian Yao and colleagues further restricted ''Endogone'' to those species that produced

suspensor Suspensors are anatomical structures found in certain fungi and plants. Fungi In fungi, suspensors are filamentous structural formations having the function of holding a zygospore between two strains of hyphae. Plants In plants, suspensors are ...

s that were in contact with one another along the entire length. Those taxa in which the suspensors did not touch one another were transferred to a new genus, '' Youngiomyces''. The generic name is derived from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

words ''endo'' (inside) and ''gone'' (reproductive organs).Gerdemann & Trappe, 1974, p. 8.

Description

''Endogone'' species are sporocarpic—they form a fruit body termed a '' sporocarp'', on which spore-bearing structures are borne. The zygospores—a

diploid Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Sets of chromosomes refer to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, respecti ...

reproductive stage in the

life cycle Life cycle, life-cycle, or lifecycle may refer to: Science and academia * Biological life cycle, the sequence of life stages that an organism undergoes from birth to reproduction ending with the production of the offspring * Life-cycle hypothesi ...

—are formed above the point of union of two

gametangia A gametangium (plural: gametangia) is an organ or cell in which gametes are produced that is found in many multicellular protists, algae, fungi, and the gametophytes of plants. In contrast to gametogenesis in animals, a gametangium is a haploid ...

, or from a

budding Budding or blastogenesis is a type of asexual reproduction in which a new organism develops from an outgrowth or bud due to cell division at one particular site. For example, the small bulb-like projection coming out from the yeast cell is kno ...

from the larger of the two. Species in the genus can be

saprobic Saprotrophic nutrition or lysotrophic nutrition is a process of chemoheterotrophic extracellular digestion involved in the processing of decayed (dead or waste) organic matter. It occurs in saprotrophs, and is most often associated with fungi ( ...

, ectomycorrhizal, or both.

Ecology

Depending on the species, sporocarps have been noted to have the odor of onions, burnt sugar, or fish.Gerdemann & Trappe, 1974, pp. 11–19. ''Endogone'' grows in soil, on rotting wood,

sphagnum ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, peat moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store wa ...

or other plant material either as

saprobes Saprotrophic nutrition or lysotrophic nutrition is a process of chemoheterotrophic extracellular digestion involved in the processing of decayed (dead or waste) organic matter. It occurs in saprotrophs, and is most often associated with fungi ( ...

ectomycorrhiza An ectomycorrhiza (from Greek ἐκτός ', "outside", μύκης ', "fungus", and ῥίζα ', "root"; pl. ectomycorrhizas or ectomycorrhizae, abbreviated EcM) is a form of symbiotic relationship that occurs between a fungal symbiont, or mycob ...

l associates. ''Endogone'' is especially important in the ecology of nutrient-poor soils. For example, ''Endogone'' fungi are known to grow in sand dunes, a nutrient-deficient

substrate Substrate may refer to: Physical layers *Substrate (biology), the natural environment in which an organism lives, or the surface or medium on which an organism grows or is attached ** Substrate (locomotion), the surface over which an organism lo ...

. Dune plants are dependent upon the fungus for growth and ecological success: the

mycelium Mycelium (plural mycelia) is a root-like structure of a fungus consisting of a mass of branching, thread-like hyphae. Fungal colonies composed of mycelium are found in and on soil and many other substrates. A typical single spore germinates in ...

of the fungus helps aggregate and

stabilize Stabilizer, stabiliser, stabilisation or stabilization may refer to: Chemistry and food processing * Stabilizer (chemistry), a substance added to prevent unwanted change in state of another substance ** Polymer stabilizers are stabilizers use ...

the sand in a network of

e, giving it cohesion and helping early succession plants establish roots. It also traps and binds fragments of

organic material Organic matter, organic material, or natural organic matter refers to the large source of carbon-based compounds found within natural and engineered, terrestrial, and aquatic environments. It is matter composed of organic compounds that have c ...

such as decaying roots and rhizomes. Various species of rodents and shrews include ''Endogone'' fungi in their diets, including the

southeastern shrew The southeastern shrew (''Sorex longirostris'') is a species of mammal in the family Soricidae. It is found in the southeastern United States. Description The southeastern shrew (''Sorex longirostris'') is reddish-brown above on its back, he ...

(''Sorex longirostris''), the

masked shrew The cinereus shrew or masked shrew (''Sorex cinereus'') is a small shrew found in Alaska, Canada, and the northern United States. This is the most widely distributed shrew in North America, where it is also known as the common shrew. Descript ...

(''Sorex cinereus''), the

vagrant shrew The vagrant shrew (''Sorex vagrans''), also known as the wandering shrew, is a medium-sized North American shrew. At one time, the montane shrew and the Orizaba long-tailed shrew were considered to belong to the same species. Range and habitat T ...

(''Sorex vagrans''), the

woodland jumping mouse The woodland jumping mouse (''Napaeozapus insignis'') is a species of jumping mouse found in North America. It can jump up to using its extremely strong feet and long tail. Taxonomy Representatives of the family Dipodidae are found in the nort ...

(''Napaeozapus insignis''), the

Siskiyou chipmunk The Siskiyou chipmunk (''Neotamias siskiyou'') is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is endemic to northern California and central Oregon in the United States. Anatomy and morphology The Siskiyou chipmunk is closest in appearance ...

(''Tamias siskiyou''), and the

marsh rice rat The marsh rice rat (''Oryzomys palustris'') is a semiaquatic North American rodent in the family Cricetidae. It usually occurs in wetland habitats, such as swamps and salt marshes. It is found mostly in the eastern and southern United States, fr ...

(''Oryzomys palustris'').

Species

*'' E. acrogena'' Gerd., Trappe & Hosford 1974 *'' E. aggregata'' P.A.Tandy 1975 – Australia *'' E. alba'' (Petch) Gerd. & Trappe 1974 *'' E. arenaria'' Thaxt. 1922 *'' E. aurantiaca'' Blaszk. 1997 *'' E. crassa'' P.A.Tandy 1975 – Australia *'' E. flammicorona'' Trappe & Gerd. 1972 *'' E. incrassata'' Thaxt. 1922 *'' E. irregularis'' Szem. 1965 *'' E. kaiseriana'' Henn. 1908 *'' E. lactiflua'' Berk. 1846 *'' E. lanata'' Harkn. 1899 *'' E. maritima'' Blaszk., Tadych & Madej 1998 *'' E. minutissima'' Beeli 1924 – Europe *'' E. oregonensis'' Gerd. & Trappe 1974 *'' E. pegleri'' Y.J.Yao 1995 *'' E. pisiformis'' Link 1809 *'' E. pseudopisiformis'' Y.J.Yao 1995 *'' E. reticulata'' P.A.Tandy 1975 – Australia *'' E. rosea'' Zeller 1941 *'' E. sphagnophila'' G.F.Atk. 1918 *'' E. tjibodensis'' Boedijn 1935 *'' E. torrendii'' Bres. 1920 *'' E. tuberculosa'' Lloyd 1918 *'' E. verrucosa'' Gerd. & Trappe 1974 *'' E. xylogena'' J.Schröt. 1887

References

Cited literature

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q5376344 Zygomycota genera Taxa named by Johann Heinrich Friedrich Link Taxa described in 1809 Zygomycota