''Coprinopsis radiata'' (formerly ''Coprinus radiatus'') is a

coprophilous fungus Coprophilous fungi (''dung-loving'' fungi) are a type of saprobic fungi that grow on animal dung. The hardy spores of coprophilous species are unwittingly consumed by herbivores from vegetation, and are excreted along with the plant matter. The f ...

that grows on herbivore dung. It is heterothallic.

Taxonomy

''Coprinopsis radiata'' was originally published in 1788 as ''Agaricus radiatus'' by English naturalist

James Bolton James Bolton (1735 – 7 January 1799) was an English naturalist, botanist, mycologist, and illustrator. Background James Bolton was born near Warley in the West Riding of Yorkshire in 1735, the son of William Bolton, a weaver. James in ...

. Samuel Frederick Gray transferred it to '' Coprinus'' in his 1821 work ''A Natural Arrangement of British Plants''. In 2001, the genus ''Coprinus'' was reorganized and this species was moved to the newly created genus ''

Coprinopsis ''Coprinopsis'' is a genus of mushrooms in the family Psathyrellaceae. ''Coprinopsis'' was split out of the genus ''Coprinus'' based on molecular data. The species ''Coprinopsis cinerea'' (='' Coprinus cinereus'') is a model organism for mushroo ...

''.

Ecology

''Coprinopsis radiata'' is known to grow from the dung of

donkey The domestic donkey is a hoofed mammal in the family Equidae, the same family as the horse. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a ...

s, sheep and horses.

Morphology

After mating and dikaryotic fruiting, the initial fruit body (young) is narrow egg-shaped and white. The mature fruit body is bluish-grey.

Research

''Coprinopsis radiata'' has been used as a

model organism A model organism (often shortened to model) is a non-human species that is extensively studied to understand particular biological phenomena, with the expectation that discoveries made in the model organism will provide insight into the workin ...

to study basidiospore formation.

Culture conditions

''Coprinopsis radiata'' is successfully cultured on horse dung at room temperature; under these conditions (with no control of external everyday light) the fungus can form a mushroom (mature fruit body).

Basidiospore activation

''Coprinopsis radiata'' produces basidiospores from its fruit body that, under proper conditions, will germinate. Spores are activated by specific chemicals or temperatures that may act synergistically. Chemically, those resembling heterocyclic, unsaturated rings with or without small

side groups In IUPAC nomenclature of chemistry, a pendant group (sometimes spelled pendent) or side group is a group of atoms attached to a backbone chain of a long molecule, usually a polymer. Pendant groups are different from pendant chains, as they are ...

, such as

furfural Furfural is an organic compound with the formula C4H3OCHO. It is a colorless liquid, although commercial samples are often brown. It has an aldehyde group attached to the 2-position of furan. It is a product of the dehydration of sugars, as occurs ...

, activate spores. Salt also causes slight activation. In the study, only low concentrations of chemicals were needed for activation. In nature, it is postulated that the combination of the following can lead to activation of dormant spores: temperature from the animal, dung heat (active organisms produce heat) and furans found on the dung (basis of compounds like furfural).

References

External links

*
NBN Gateway
{{Taxonbar, from=Q10477885 Fungi described in 1788 Fungi of Europe Fungi of North America radiata