Provided here are both reviews and recent results of studies with medically important fungi. Throughout the volume, outstanding mycologists treat the ecological role of pathogenic fungi, how they cause disease, their interactions with the immune system, and their responses to antifungal agents. Most of the presented results are based on molecular biological approaches: areas where classical and descriptive methods are applied are also included.

Biochemistry and molecular biology are among the most rapidly emerging areas in the life sciences. Indeed, a number of important advances have been made with fungi and yeasts since the first edition of this volume was published in 1996. Still further, the influence that genomics projects have had on the design and interpretation of experiments in almost all areas is truly impressive. The availability of large amounts of sequence data has quickly altered the scope and dimensions of genetics and biochemistry, leading to new insights into fungal biology.

Earlier chapters on...

Whereas plant and insect infections are commonly caused by fungi, only a small minority of the vast diversity of fungal species is pathogenic to humans. Despite this, fungal infections cause considerable morbidity and mortality worldwide. This volume is dedicated to the biology, clinical presentation and management of invasive fungal infections. Major pathogenic fungi are introduced by world-leading experts and the basic principles of fungal virulence are reviewed in the light of new results and experimental technologies that offer unprecedented insights into invasive infections caused by...

Since the publication of the first edition of "The Mycota Vol. V – Plant Relationships" in 1997, tremendous advances in fungal molecular biology and biochemistry have taken place; and both light and electron microscopical techniques have improved considerably. These new insights led to a better understanding of the relationships between fungi and plants; and a completely revised new edition of Plant Relationships could be produced, providing an up-to-date overview on mutualistic and pathogenic interactions.

In 18 chapters internationally acknowledged authors present reviews on...

Sequence analyses of numerous fungal genomes over the past two decades have provided us with extensive insights into the phylogenetic relationships of fungi and the distribution of genes and their inferred functions, across the fungal kingdom. It is now possible to answer questions about the origin of the fungal kingdom and fungal evolution with an analytical precision that was not possible before.

This fully revised and updated 2nd edition of The Mycota, Vol. 14, addresses major aspects of fungal evolution. The book is divided into four sections covering the following main...

Fungi are associated with a wide variety of other organisms. Ecologist Peter Price has said, "mutualism facilitates adaptive radiation," and many biologists attribute Earth's great fungal diversity to such associations. The 3rd edition of The Mycota, Vol. 9: Fungal Associations, has been revised to provide entirely new coverage of fungi and associated organisms in fourteen informative discussions that take advantage of today's large public databases and modern molecular and data analysis methods. The editors have a keen interest in fungal associations in their own...

Estimates based on sequencing data suggest that there are around 5.1 million species of fungi. Yet only a small number of fungi are harmful to animals, including humans. In addition to host-pathogen interactions, there are also mutualistic interactions between fungi and animals. Diseases caused by pathogenic fungi range from allergic reactions and superficial infections to invasive mycoses, and have a significant impact on human and animal life. Fungi are also cultivated by animals as a food source in highly developed relationships or are even involved in gut mutualism.

This 3rd...