ABSTRACT

Most fungi in the order Mucorales (Mucoromycotina1) are saprobic and live as ubiquitous inhabitants of soil. Few of them are able to facultatively parasitize on other fungi or plants. Furthermore, there are few genera and species that occur as opportunistic pathogens and cause mucormycoses in humans and animals.2-4 The trademark of all mucoralean fungi is the columella, a bulbous and sterile vesicle at the sporangiophore apex, which rejuvenates in a funnel-like manner into the apophysis giving the appearance of pearshaped (pyriform) sporangia typical for the genus Absidia (Figure 84.1A, B, M-R).