Mold Quiz

b). Molds are multicellular, filamentous fungi, while slime molds belong to a more primitive group of organisms called the Protista, which form unicellular or colonial forms such as amoebas and primitive algae.

(left) slime mold (right) mold (Photo source: D. Sadikovic, Mold Busters)

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.

a) 30-50%. Studies show that consistent associations of dampness with adverse health effects, strongly suggesting a causation by dampness-related exposures.

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.

b) Lobsters, because the shell of arthropods (crustations, insects, spiders, and such animals) and the cell walls of fungi (molds) are made of chitin, a structural polysaccharide (sugar) molecule.

The cell wall structure of Fungi (Photo source: Maya and Rike, Wikimedia)

b). Penicillin, the first antibiotic, was isolated and discovered in 1928 by Dr. Alexander Fleming from Penicillium mold.

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.

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.

a) they look like the Christian Holy Water sprinkler device, called aspergillum.

(up) Aspergillum (Photo Source: Pearson Scott Foresman, Wikipedia); (down) Aspergillus niger conidiophore (Photo source: Kathie Hodge, Flickr).

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