ABSTRACT
Fungi have been playing very significant roles in nature by way of decomposing organic matter, cycling the nutrients and exchanging them. They also have long been used as a direct source of food, such as mushrooms and truffles, as a leavening agent for bread, and in the fermentation of various food products. Besides these, fungi are also known to play role in remediation of toxic materials from the environment (mycoremediation). Recently, fungi have been enormously used for the synthesis of nanoparticles (myconanotechnology) which have their applications in different fields. Nanomaterials have many applications in different fields like electronics, agriculture, pharmaceuticals and medicine, etc. Nanoparticles are used as antimicrobials in the field of medicine. How fungi remove the heavy metals and other toxic compounds from the environment by virtue of their ability to make nanoparticles has also been dealt with. This area of research is now gaining importance and momentum. In this chapter the role of fungi in the field of nanotechnology has been discussed and the application potentials of this new and emerging branch of science have also been emphasized.
