Fungi can reproduce asexually through several methods including fission, budding, fragmentation, and production of asexual spores. Asexual spores, also called mitospores or conidia, are produced either endogenously within structures like sporangia or exogenously on structures like conidiophores. Sporangia can produce motile zoospores or non-motile aplanospores. Conidiophores bear conidia that can exist singly or in chains. Asexual fruiting structures include synnemata, sporodochia, pycnidia, and acervuli.

1. Asexual Reproduction in Fungi

4. ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION
Asexual reproduction does not involve union of sex
organs (gametangia) or sex cells (gametes) or nuclei.
Spores produced in asexual reproduction are called
mitospores / asexual spores.
Asexual spores are borne in spore bearing structure
called sporophore / sporogenous cells.
The process of formation of spore is called
Sporogenesis or Sporulation

5. ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION
Fission
Budding
Fragmentation
Production of
asexual spores

7. 1. Fission of unicellular thalli:
 Fission is simple splitting of cells into two daughter
cells by constriction and the formation of a cell wall.
 It is observed in Schizosaccharomyces spp

8. 2. Budding- production of a small outgrowth
(bud) from a parent cell.
The nucleus of the parent cell divides and one
daughter nucleus migrates into the bud.
The bud increases in size, while still attached to the
parent cell and eventually breaks off and forms a new
individual. It is common in yeasts. Saccharomyces sp.

9. 3. Fragmentation of mycelium
 Mycelial fragments from any part of the thallus
may grow into new individuals when suitable
conditions are provided.
4. Production of asexual spores
 Reproduction by the production of spores is
very common in many fungi.

10. SPORES
The term 'spore' is applied to any small propagative,
reproductive or survival unit, which separates from a
hypha or sporogenous cell and can grow independently
into a new individual.
Spores may be unicellular or multicellular.
The spores may be motile or non-motile.
If the spores are motile they are called planospores
(Gr. planetes = wanderer) and non-motile spores are
called aplanospores.

11. Asexual spores
Endogenously Exogenously

12. 1. Spores are produced endogenously within the sac-
like structure called sporangium which is formed at
the tip of the sporogenous cell called sporangiophore.
Such spores are called zoospores and aplanospores.
e.g. Zygomycota fungi
Sporangium is a sac-like globose structure produces
sporangiospores
Hyaline sporangium e.g., Pythium sp.
Pigmented sporangium e.g., Rhizopus sp.
Sporangia produced singly e.g., Pythium sp.
Sporangia produced in chains e.g., Albugo sp.
Intercalary e.g., Phytophthora sp.
Terminal e.g., Rhizopus sp.

13. Spores produced endogenously inside the sporangium
Single sporangium

14. Asexual reproduction

15. Sporangia in chain

16. Zoospore release
Zoospore
Vesicle
Sporangium
Sporangiophore
Anterior
Tinsel
Posterior whiplash

17. Sympodially branched Sporangiophore
(More or less zig-zag)
Sporangium with papilae

18. Spores are produced inside the sporangium called
Sporangiospores, which are of two types
Direct germination of sporangia
e.g., Peronosclerospora sorghi
Indirect germination through zoospores
e.g., Sclerospora graminicola

19. Spores
Zoospores / Planospores /
Motile spores or Swarmspores
Aplanospores /
Non-motile spores
e.g., Oomycota fungi
Pythium aphanidermatum
e.g., Zygomycota
Mucor, Rhizopus

20. 1. Zoospore is an asexually produced spore, which is
motile by means of flagellum or flagella.
Normally, zoospores are uninucleate and haploid.
Zoospores may be spherical, oval, pyriform, elongate or
reniform in shape. The zoospores are provided with one
or two flagella (sing. flagellum, L. flagellum=whip) for its
movement in the surrounding film of water.
These flagella may be anterior, posterior or laterally
attached to a groove in the body.
There are two types of flagella in zoospores. They are
whiplash and tinsel types.

21. The whiplash flagellum has a long rigid base with a
short flexible end.
The tinsel flagellum has a central rachis covered on
all sides with short fibrils.
In uniflagellate zoospores the flagellum may be
anterior or posterior.
In biflagellate zoospores one is whiplash and the other
is tinsel type and one points forward and the other
backward.
In Plasmodiophorales fungi flagella are of whiplash
type and unequal.

22. Sporangial germination with one swarming stage
involving the formation of only one kind of zoospore is
called monoplanetic. e.g., Pythium sp.
Sporangial germination with two swarming stage
involving the formation of two kinds of zoospores are
called diplanetic. e.g., Plasmodiophora sp.
If more than two swarming stages with more than
two kinds of zoospores it is called as polyplanetic.
e.g., Achlya sp.

23. Kinds of Zoospores

24. 2. Alanospores or Non-motile spores
These are the asexual spores of Zygomycota fungi
produced inside the sporangium. They are either
uninucleate or multinucleate without any flagella.
They are formed only at the periphery of the
sporangium and leave a large gap at the center and
base of the sporangium, which is known as columella.

25. Aplanospores are released by the dissolution of the
sporangial wall or by the break down of entire
sporangium. (e.g.) Mucor sp. and Rhizopus sp.

26. 2. Spores are produced exogenously on sporogenous
cells called conidiophores and the spores are called
conidia. e.g., Ascomycota
Fungi produce more than one form of spores are
called polymorphic or pleomorphic fungi. e.g.,
Fusarium produces two types of
asexual spores viz., macroconidia
and microconidia

27. Spores produced exogenously on the sporogenous cells
Conidia asexual spores borne on conidiophore.
Holoblastic Both inner and outer layer of the
conidiogenous cell contribute to conidium formation
e.g., Cladosporium herbarum
Enteroblastic Only inner wall (Helminthosporium sp.)
or a completely new wall layer (Aspergillus sp.) is
involved in conidium formation

28. Produced in chains e.g.
Erysiphe sp.

29. Leveillula taurica
( Red gram & Chilli
powdery mildew)
Oidiopsis type-
Branched
Single club shaped
conidia
Produced singly e.g. Leveillula
and Colletotrichum sp.

30. Conidia formed in acropetal or blastocatenate (oldest
conidium at the base and the youngest at the apex)
e.g., Cladosporium sp.

31. Produced in chains e.g.
Erysiphe sp.
Conidia formed in basipetal or basocatenate (oldest
conidium at the apex and youngest at the base)
e.g. Erysiphe sp.

32. phialides
Conidia are borne in chain on the bottle-like structure
(phialides) formed on the top most layer of the
sterigmata, which are formed on vesicle.
E.g. Penicillium

33. Arthrospores : Conidia formed in chains by the
simultaneous or random fragmentation of the hypha

34. Hyaline conidia are called hyalospores
Pigmented conidia are called phaeospores
Septate and hyaline - Fusarium sp. (macroconidia)
Coenocytic and hyaline -
Colletotrichum sp.

35. Pestalotia
Conidia with hyaline and coloured segment
Pestalotia sp.

36. Alternaria
Conidia with vertical and transverse septa
Alternaria sp.

37. Aspergillus Penicillium
Coenocytic and coloured - Aspergillus sp.

38. Septate and coloured - Helminthosporium sp.

39. Asexual fructifications or fruiting bodies
Synnema
Sporodochium
Pycnidium
Acervulus

40. Asexual fructifications or fruiting bodies
1. Synnema or coremium
 Synnema or Coremium (pl. coremia) Consists of a
group of conidiophores often united at the base and
part way up the top.
 Conidia may be formed along the length of the
synnema or only at its apex.
 The conidiophores comprising a synnema are often
branched at the top with the conidia arising from
the conidiogenous cells at the tips of the numerous
branches. E.g. Ceratocystis

41. Synnema

42. 2. Sporodochium
Sporodochium is a fruiting body in which
conidiophores arise from a central cushion-like
aggregation of hyphae
The conidiophores are packed tightly together and are
generally shorter than those composing a synnema.
E.g. Fusarium
conidiophores
conidia

43. 3. Pycnidium
Pycnidium is a globose or flask-shaped body, which is
lined on the inside with conidiophores.
E.g. Septoria , Phoma, Ascochyta
Pycnidia may be completely closed or may have an
opening.
The opening or mouth of pycnidium is called ostiole (L.
ostiolum = little door). They may be provided with a
small papilla or with a long neck leading to the opening.
Conidiophores produced by pycnidium is called as
Pycnidiophores

44. The wall of pycnidium is called peridium (pl.
peridia; G. peridion=small leather pouch) and it is
composed of multicellular layer, as fungal tissues.
Pycnidia may formed superficially or sunken in
the substratum. They may be formed directly by
the loose mycelium or may be definitely stromatic.
papilla
ostiole

45. 4. Acervulus
Acervulus (pl. acervuli) is a fruiting structure
commonly found in the Glomerales
It is typically a flat or saucer-shaped mass of
aggregated hyphae bearing short conidiophores in a
compact layer.
Intermingled with the conidiophores, setae (sing.
seta; L. seta = bristle) are found. Setae are long,
pointed, dark coloured, sterile structures.

46. In nature acervuli are produced on plant tissues
subepidermally or subcuticularly and becomes
erumpent on maturity. E.g. Colletotrichum
conidiophore
conidia
setae

47. Conidia
Anamorph : Colletotrichum gloeosporioides
Acervuli
Setae
It produces hyaline, septate and branched
mycelium.

48. ostiole

49. conidiophores

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