Mold Quiz

c) Because they look like paintbrushes – The entire genus Penicillium got its name because their spore-bearing structures look like paintbrushes, which are called “penicilli” in Latin.

Penicillium sp. conidiophore (Photo source: AJC1, Wikimedia).

b) To recycle organic matter through decomposition and mineralization. In fact, everything lignin-containing can only be dissolved by saprophytic fungi, without which life on this planet wouldn’t be possible due to sheer amounts of debris formed by undecomposed plant material.

Nutrient cycle (Photo source: Jakob Assmann)

The correct answer is 8%, and the most common types (in two-thirds of cases) belong to the Penicillium/Aspergillus group.

a). Rhizopus fungi create black mold spots on old bread. It is never safe to eat mouldy bread as ingesting black mold can cause nausea, vomiting, and allergic reactions.

d) All of the above. Furthermore, prolonged exposure to mold can manifest in symptoms ranging from rashes, allergies and flu-like symptoms to neurological damage and even death.

a). Molds are multicellular, filamentous organisms that belong to the kingdom of Fungi.

c). Moisture is the crucial ingredient for mold to thrive. Generally, the most common reasons for indoor mold spread are plumbing and roof leaks, wet basements, bad yard drainage, and high humidity.

c) 96. A clinical survey discovered mold in mucus of 96% of patients suffering from chronic sinus infections, a disease which annually impacts more than 20 million adults U.S.

e) All of the above. Prolonged exposure to molds can induce many different health problems, with intensity depending from mild irritations in healthy people to life-threatening infections in immunocompromised patients.

a) 13%, and the most common types (in more than half cases) are from the Penicillium/Aspergillus group.