The amazing diversity of fungi, protists, and algae is, in many instances, difficult to detect with the naked eye. Readers will learn all about the internal structures, genetic material, biochemical processes, and taxonomy that define these varied, small yet complex eukaryotic organisms. This volume demonstrates the many important functions that fungi, protists, and algae serve in the natural world, as well as in the lives of humans through various foods, medicines, and biotechnologies.

This new edition of The Fungi provides a comprehensive introduction to the importance of fungi in the natural world and in practical applications, from a microbiological perspective.

Protists are by far the most diverse and abundant eukaryotes in soils. Nevertheless, very little is known about individual representatives, the diversity and community composition and ecological functioning of these important organisms. For instance, soil protists are commonly lumped into a single functional unit, i.e. bacterivores. This work tackles missing knowledge gaps on soil protists and common misconceptions using multi-methodological approaches including cultivation, microcosm experiments and environmental sequencing. In a first part, several new species and genera of amoeboid protists are described showing their immense unknown diversity. In the second part, the enormous complexity of soil protists communities is highlighted using cultivation- and sequence-based approaches. In the third part, the present of diverse mycophagous and nematophagous protists are shown in functional studies on cultivated taxa and their environmental importance supported by sequence-based approaches. This work is just a start for a promising future of soil Protistology that is likely to find other important roles of these diverse organisms.

Explores the appearance, characteristics, and behavior of protists and fungi, lifeforms which are neither plants nor animals, using specific examples such as algae, mold, and mushrooms.

Black & white print. Concepts of Biology is designed for the typical introductory biology course for nonmajors, covering standard scope and sequence requirements. The text includes interesting applications and conveys the major themes of biology, with content that is meaningful and easy to understand. The book is designed to demonstrate biology concepts and to promote scientific literacy.

Life Sciences.

Fungi research and knowledge grew rapidly following recent advances in genetics and genomics. This book synthesizes new knowledge with existing information to stimulate new scientific questions and propel fungal scientists on to the next stages of research. This book is a comprehensive guide on fungi, environmental sensing, genetics, genomics, interactions with microbes, plants, insects, and humans, technological applications, and natural product development.