• Main features of fungi:
  • They are?usually multicellular?but some are?single-celled?(e.g. yeast)
  • Multicellular fungi are mainly made up of?thread-like structures?known as?hyphae?that contain?many nuclei?and are organised into a?network?known as a?mycelium
  • Their cells contain a?nucleus?with a?distinct membrane
  • Their cells have cell walls made of?chitin?(chitinous cell walls)
  • Their cells?do not?contain?chloroplasts?(so they?cannot?carry out?photosynthesis)
  • They feed by?secreting extracellular digestive enzymes?(outside the mycelium)?onto the food?(usually decaying organic matter) and then absorbing the digested molecules. This method of feeding is known as?saprotrophic nutrition
  • Some fungi are?parasitic?and feed on?living material
  • Some fungi store carbohydrates as?glycogen
  • They?do not?have?nervous coordination
  • Examples of fungi include: moulds, mushrooms, yeasts

   

A typical fungal cell

The typical structure of a multicellular fungus e.g. Mucor (bread mould)

• Main features of protoctists:
  • The protoctists are a very?diverse?kingdom of organisms that don't really belong in any of the other eukaryotic kingdoms (animals, plants and fungi)
  • They are?mainly microscopic and single-celled?but some?aggregate?(group together) into?larger forms, such as colonies or chains of cells that form filaments
  • Their cells contain a?nucleus?with a?distinct membrane
  • Some have features making them more like animal cells e.g.?Plasmodium?(the protoctist that causes?malaria)
  • Some have features, such as?cell walls?and?chloroplasts, making them more like plant cells e.g.?green algae, such as?Chlorella
  • This means?some?protoctists?photosynthesise?and some feed on organic substances made by other living things
  • They?do not?have?nervous coordination
  • Examples of protoctists include: amoeba,?Paramecium,?Plasmodium,?Chlorella

   

Two examples of protoctist cells