(Solved) Why do fungi have chitin as their cell wall material?

Fireman 23

wrote...

Go to Answer

Posts: 172

Rep:

12 years ago

Why do fungi have chitin as their cell wall material?

why do fungi have chitin as their call wall material, as opposed to having cellulose, lignin, etc exhibited plants.

Read 839 times

3 Replies

Report

Replies

Smntnl

wrote...

12 years ago

Not all species of fungi have cell walls but in those that do, the cell walls are composed of glucosamine and chitin, the same carbohydrate that gives strength to the exoskeletons of insects. They serve a similar purpose to those of plant cells, giving fungal cells rigidity and strength to hold their shape and preventing osmotic lysis. They also limit the entry of molecules that may be toxic to the fungus, such as plant-produced and synthetic fungicides. The composition, properties, and form of the fungal cell wall change during the cell cycle and depend on growth conditions.

Report

michelle10

wrote...

12 years ago

Another part of the answer to this is that fungi are actually more closely related to animals than plants. We humans have only thought of them as plants because the mushroom/toadstool kinds of fungal reproductive structures seem to grow like plants.

Report

Answer accepted by topic starter

fireman

wrote...

Posts: 142

Rep:

12 years ago

This verified answer contains over 230 words.

Report

Home Search Q & A Board Gallery Resource Library Blog Dictionary Chat	Quick Links Start a Topic Latest Topics Unanswered Questions Courses Study Tools Browse by Textbook	Social Facebook YouTube Community Stats Who's Online Trending Staff	Help About Us Take the Tour Study Tips Posting Guidelines Terms and Policies Contact Us
Biology Forums - Study Force © 2010-2025 \| Powered by SMF \| SMF © 2015, Simple Machines \| Sitemap Biology-Forums.com is not affiliated with any publisher. Book covers, title and author names appear for reference only.

Why do fungi have chitin as their cell wall material?

Related Topics