Page 162 - The Microworld Miracle

down the substance they are going to eat into its separate com-
pounds. By this method they are able to break down organic matter
around them. Fungi consist of, thin fibers divided into branches
known as mycelia, whose cells expand at great speed for food di-
gestion.

This can be viewed more clearly under a microscope. These
protracting arms release enzymes that can break down and digest
almost anything organic, even solid substances. The dimensions of
the micro-fibers are just 1/100,000 inch, (almost 2,54 centimeters)

and a new branches form every half hour. This growth is so rapid
rate that the total length of the cells emerging from a single fungal
spore multiplying at that speed over two days can reach hundreds
of kilometers. 86
These arms permit the fungi to reach a wide variety of places.

These arms and the enzymes make fungi one of the most funda-
mental living things, apart from bacteria, that turn organic and in-
organic substances into simpler molecules. This transformation is
vitally important because some living things lack the ability to ab-
sorb complex organic substances into their bodies, and first need

them to be separated into simpler components. Fungi turn these

THE MICROWORLD MIRACLE Fungi can easily

break down ev-
erything around
them. That is be-
cause their bod-
ies consist of mi-
croscopic
branches known

160 as mycelia.