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Glossary of Mold Terminology
Absolute levels: The total spore concentration at any given
location.
Airborne mold: Generally refers to mold spores in the air.
Algae: Unicellular or multi-cellular organisms having
chlorophyll but lacking multi-cellular sex organs typical of plants.
Anamorph: The asexual part of a fungal life cycle. The spores
produced are asexual (mitosporic). In many fungi, this is the only
type of reproduction that occurs.
Ascomycete: A large group of fungi that produce their
meiospores (ascospores) within structures called asci.
Bacteria: A group of prokaryotic organisms with distinctive
cell wall structures, some of which are important as pathogens and
for their biochemical properties.
Biocide: A substance that kills living organisms.
Biodegradable: Material capable of being broken down by
micro-organisms.
Brown Rot: A fungal disease causing decay and brown
discoloration on the wood surface. Brown rot fungi degrade only the
cellulose in wood.
Cellulolytic Fungi: Fungi capable of utilizing (breaking
down) cellulose containing material.
Cellulose: The principal polysaccharide of plant cell walls.
Conidia: An asexual spore formed by many different types of
fungi.
Conidiophores: Specialized hyphae on which Conidia are
formed.
Fruiting Body: A general term for the structures that enclose
spore bearing cells in fungi.
Fungus (pl. Fungi): Eukaryotes that produce exoenzymes and
absorb the predigested food, usually producing a network of
extending, branched tubes called hyphae.
Genus: Taxonomic rank below family. These names are always
capitalized and italicized. Ie: Cladisporium or Alternarium.
Hypha (pl. Hyphae): One of the individual filaments of a
mycelium.
Indoor Air Sample: A sample taken from an indoor source.
Usually compared with an outdoor sample to determine of there are
elevated concentrations of spores present indoors.
Lichen: A dual organism composed of a fungus and an alga or
cyanobacterium (green bacterium).
Macrofungi: Fungi having large fruiting bodies that protect
spore bearing structures.
Meiospores: Spores resulting from sexual reproduction
(meiosis).
Mycelium: A mass of hyphae.
Outdoor Air Sample: A sample taken outdoors. Usually compared
with indoor samples to determine if there are elevated
concentrations of spores indoors.
Pathogen: A parasite capable of causing disease in a
particular host or range of hosts.
Pycnidia: An often flask shaped fruiting body composed of
fungal tissue that is lined on the inside with conidiophores.
Relative Levels: The spore concentration of one location
relative to that of another. An example would be comparing the in
side concentration of spores relative to the outside concentrations.
Saprobe: A heterotropic organism that derives food from dead
organisms or from organic substances liberated by living ones.
Scientific Name: An organism’s scientific name usually
consists of a genus designation and a species designation. Together
this is called a binomial. Examples of binomials are Alternaria
alternata, Ulocladium atra and Homo sapien.
Soft Rot: A decomposition of plant parts (fruits, roots,
stems etc.) by fungi resulting in the tissues becoming g soft. The
soft rot fungi can degrade all three of the structural wood
components (cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin), although the major
food sources are cellulose and hemicellulose. For soft rot to occur,
liquid water must be continuously present. Wood with soft rot is
spongy.
Species: The lowest ranking common taxonomic rank. These
names are italicized but not capitalized.
Spore Chains: Chains of fungal spores, all linked together,
usually in preparation for dissemination into the environment.
Examples of genera that produce spores in chains include
Aspergillus, Penicillium and Cladosporium.
Spore (fungal): A microscopic propagule acting as an agent of
dispersal capable of giving rise to a new colony.
Thermophiles: Fungi that thrive at high temperature.
Viable Sample: A sample taken for the purpose of determine
what organisms are capable of growing on specific nutrient media.
Viable Spore: A spore that is alive.
Water Activity: Expressed as aw; refers to the available
water or moisture in a substrate expressed as a decimal fraction of
the amount present when the substrate is in equilibrium with a
saturated atmosphere.
Wet Spore Dispersal: A spore dispersal strategy. Wet spores
are often slimy and usually carried away on water or by animals.
White Rot: White rot fungi primarily degrade the lignin
component of the wood structure. These fungi remove the lignin and
leave the white cellulose. Wood that has been decayed by a white rot
fungus is whitish and stringy.
Wind Spore Dispersal: A spore dispersal strategy. Dry spores
are often designed to be carried away by wind currents.
Wood Rot: There are three major types of fungal induced wood
decay: Brown rot, Soft rot and White rot.
Xerophiles Fungi that thrives at low water activities. |
