Evolutionary increases in multicellular complexity have been found to be the root of the vast array of fungi.
Most people know that there are different types of fungi. The disparity of a group had never been analyzed together.
Prior to our analyses, we didn't know how this variety was distributed across the different types of fungi. Which groups are the most diverse? Which are the worst? Through time, how has this variety changed? What has led to the differences in disparity? We wanted to answer these questions.
They found that the evolution of multicellularity in different fungi opens the door for more variety. There was an increase in disparity associated with the emergence of the first multicellular fungi and the evolution of dikaryotic species. The inclusion of a dikaryon, a cell with two separate nuclei, is what defines these fungi.
There is an implication that these results are in line with the analyses of animal disparity. The kingdoms have evolved through time.
Smith said that the world of fungi is defined by bright colors and strange shapes. The analyses show that the variety has evolved in spurts.
The study is published in a journal. The next step is to combine the data from the two kingdoms in order to expand the net. The team is one step closer to analyzing the disparity of multicellular life as a result of this data.
More information: Thomas Smith, Evolution of fungal phenotypic disparity, Nature Ecology & Evolution (2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41559-022-01844-6. www.nature.com/articles/s41559-022-01844-6 Journal information: Nature Ecology & Evolution Citation: Weird and wonderful world of fungi shaped by evolutionary bursts, study finds (2022, August 15) retrieved 15 August 2022 from https://phys.org/news/2022-08-weird-world-fungi-evolutionary.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.