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The English word fungus is directly adopted from the Latin fungus (mushroom), used in the writings of Horace and Pliny. [10] This in turn is derived from the Greek word sphongos (σφόγγος 'sponge'), which refers to the macroscopic structures and morphology of mushrooms and molds; [11] the root is also used in other languages, such as the German Schwamm ('sponge') and Schimmel ('mold').
Non-cellular life, also known as acellular life, is life that exists without a cellular structure for at least part of its life cycle. [1] Historically, most definitions of life postulated that an organism must be composed of one or more cells, [2] but, for some, this is no longer considered necessary, and modern criteria allow for forms of life based on other structural arrangements.
The two-domain system is a biological classification by which all organisms in the tree of life are classified into two domains, Bacteria and Archaea. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] It emerged from development of knowledge of archaea diversity and challenges the widely accepted three-domain system that classifies life into Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya . [ 4 ]
The organisms that constitute the microbial world are characterized as either prokaryotes or eukaryotes; Eukaryotic microorganisms possess membrane-bound organelles and include fungi and protists, whereas prokaryotic organisms are conventionally classified as lacking membrane-bound organelles and include Bacteria and Archaea.
The classification of living things into animals and plants is an ancient one. Aristotle (384–322 BC) classified animal species in his History of Animals, while his pupil Theophrastus (c. 371 –c. 287 BC) wrote a parallel work, the Historia Plantarum, on plants. [7]
Biologists classify these organisms as a kingdom, Fungi, the second highest taxonomic rank of living organism beneath the Eukaryota domain; other kingdoms include plants, animals, protists, and bacteria. One difference that places fungi in a different kingdom is that their cell walls contain chitin, unlike the cell walls of plants, bacteria and ...
The Fungi are classified as a kingdom that is separate from plants and animals. The discipline of biology devoted to the study of fungi is known as mycology or fungal biology, which is historically regarded as a branch of botany , even though genetic studies have shown that fungi are more closely related to animals than to plants.
The three-domain system adds a level of classification (the domains) "above" the kingdoms present in the previously used five- or six-kingdom systems.This classification system recognizes the fundamental divide between the two prokaryotic groups, insofar as Archaea appear to be more closely related to eukaryotes than they are to other prokaryotes – bacteria-like organisms with no cell nucleus.