Imperfect fungi - fukanzenkinrui

Japanese: 不完全菌類 - ふかんぜんきんるい

Fungi imperfecti are a general term for fungi for which the sexual reproduction method that serves as the basis for phylogenetic classification is unknown. Therefore, there are no characteristics that determine their proper classification. However, the characteristics of their vegetative and asexual reproduction methods can determine the group of fungi to which they belong (in this case, the taxonomic phylum). This is why fungi imperfecti are included in various phyla.

Apart from these, there is the Ascomycota, which is a subphylum of the Ascomycota. The reason for creating this subphylum is that there are a huge number of species of imperfect fungi that reproduce by conidia (a type of asexual spore), with over 16,000 asexual stages (conidial and imperfect stages), and organizing them based on the characteristics of conidial formation is helpful in the study of new species and in identifying the sexual stages (ascosal and perfect stages) of known species. This subphylum is therefore an artificial taxonomic group created for convenience. Most of the fungi in this group that have been shown to actually reproduce sexually have been properly assigned to the Ascomycota.

[Hironori Terakawa]

Classification

The fungi are broadly divided into yeast fungi, filamentous fungi, conidiocarpic fungi, and lichen fungi.

(1) Class Cryptococcales: This class includes unicellular fungi that undergo budding (several exceptions have now been discovered to belong to the Basidiomycete order and have been placed in the Subales).

(2) Class Imperfect Fungi [1] Moniliales (Collapsed Imperfect Fungi) Includes many genera such as Aspergillus, Penicillium, and Porichicium.

[2] Tuberculares (Tuberculinae Imperfecti fungi) In addition to Fusarium, which causes wilt and dry rot in plants, this order includes many genera that have dense conidiophores growing on the sporangia.

[3] Arthropoda (conidiophore-associated imperfect fungi): Includes Arthropoda and others.

[4] Hyphae Imperfect Fungi (Asporogenes): Some have been transferred to the Basidiomycete Turizunellales order.

(3) Conidiophore Deuteromycota class [1] Melanconiales (Conidiophyta Deuteromycota and Melanchomycota)
[2] Sphaeropsis (order of imperfect fungi)
(4) Lichen Mycota [Hironori Terakawa]

[Reference items] | Locida | Ascomycetes | Cordyceps sinensis

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

不完全菌とは、系統分類の基準となる有性生殖法が知られていない菌の総称である。したがって、その正当な所属を決める特徴がない。しかし、栄養体と無性生殖法の特徴によって、それが所属する菌群（この場合は分類学上の菌門）を判定することはできる。いろいろの菌門に不完全菌が含まれているのは、こうした理由による。

　これらとは別に、子嚢(しのう)菌類（子嚢菌門）の亜門とされる不完全菌類がある。ここで特に亜門を設けるのは、分生子（無性的な胞子の一種）で繁殖する無性段階（分生子段階・不完全段階）の不完全菌の数が1万6000種を超えるおびただしい数であるため、分生子形成の特徴に基づいて整理しておくことは、新種の研究および既知種の有性段階（子嚢段階・完全段階）を探る助けとなるからである。したがって、この亜門は便宜上つくられた人為分類群といえる。この菌群に含まれたもののうち、実際に有性生殖が明らかになったものの大部分は、子嚢菌としての正当な所属が決められてきた。

［寺川博典］