Mycology is...
the science that deals with true fungi (kingdom Fungi), and, traditionally, fungal-like organisms belonging to other eukaryotic lineages (e.g. Myxomycetes, Plasmodiophorids, Acrasiomycetes, Oomycetes). The independence of Mycology among other disciplines of life sciences is based on the unique life style of true fungi. Fungi are distinctly different from plants and animals, although their close phylogenetic relationship to the latter is widely accepted today. The diversity of fungi is huge: the existence of 1.5-3 Mio. species is expected, from which about 100 000 species are described so far. All possible habitats – terrestrial or aquatic – in any climatic zone are occupied by fungi. Equally enormous is their adaptability to different environments. Particular modes of growth and reproduction together with a high physiological plasticity allow them the colonization of almost every substrate as well as complex interactions with other organisms including human beings. As symbionts or parasites, fungi play a key role in every ecosystem. Their socio-economic impact in human nutrition and health, forestry and agriculture, and their role as indispensable model organisms in basic research is omnipresent.
