Preserving Fungal Specimens

The impetus for this post is the news that Kew Gardens will soon possess the world's largest collection of fungi. Now it stands to reason that a collection of fungi must be preserved and maintained. First the specimens must be prepared.

Preserving Fungal Fruit Bodies

Collecting and Preserving Fungi (PDF Manual)

How to Collect, Record and Preserve Fungi Specimens

Collecting and Preserving Fungi (PDF) (an old classic)

A Simple Way to Preserve Fungal Cultures

Preserving cultures of wood-decaying Basidiomycotina using sterile distilled water in cryovials (PDF)

Technique for Long-Term Preservation of Phytopathogenic Fungi
in Liquid Nitrogen (PDF)

Preservation and Distribution of Fungal Cultures (PDF)

Isolation of Dung Fungi

This post is inspired by a recent article about scientists using an analysis of ancient dung fungi to study the environment during the time of the mammoths and their extinction. Dung fungi are relatively easy to observe, and even to isolate, so long as you don't have major qualms about working with dung.

The following references for isolation of dung fungi are either procedures or papers with clearly written Materials and Methods sections.

Isolation of Coprophilous Fungi (Word doc)

Isolation and Identification of Coprophillous Fungi

Diversity of Microfungi from animal excrement at Ko Saaesarn and Mu Ko Angthong National Park (PDF)

Fungal Protocols at Journal of Visualized Experiments

In an interesting new venture, some PhDs founded the Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE). JoVE hails itself as "online research journal employing visualization to increase reproducibility and transparency in biological sciences."

Looks pretty good. Anyone can get a free one-day subscription and an individual annual is $99.

A search of the website reveals two video series devoted to techniques applicable to fungal research.

Assay for Adhesion and Agar Invasion in S. cerevisiae

Gibberella zeae Ascospore Production and Collection for Microarray Experiments

Mycotoxicology

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations is interested in fungi from both a human health and welfare perspective as well as an economic one. FAO has a couple of publication of interest to anyone interested in food safety and mycotoxins.

First there is a PDF manual entitled Handbook of Mycological Methods, provided by the FAO project on mycotoxins in coffee.

There is also a web-based edition of publication (ISSN 0254-4725) FAO FOOD AND NUTRITION PAPER 73—Manual on the application of the HACCP System in Mycotoxin prevention and control. This publication discusses Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) with respect to mycotoxins in food supply systems.

Antifungal Susceptibility Testing

Antifungal susceptibility testing is a process used to determine the effectiveness of drugs and other compounds against live cultures of fungi. Such tests are used to evaluate antifungal drugs so that effective treatments can be prescribed. Such tests are also used in laboratory demonstrations and to compare the effectiveness of new compounds against established standards.

Mycology Online from the University of Adelaide in Australia offers three professional quality articles on antifungal susceptibility testing:

CLSI and Sensititre YeastOne Methods
Neo-Sensitab and Etest Methods
Antifungal Susceptibility Profiles

Some others of interest are:

Etest for Antifungal Susceptibility Testing (PDF)

Antifungal Susceptibility Testing: Practical Aspects and Current Challenges

Yeast infections - From specimen collection to antifungal susceptibility testing (PDF)

Reference Method for Broth Dilution Antifungal Susceptibility Testing of Yeasts (PDF)