Changes in fungi with age. Chemical composition of Rhizoctonia solani and Sclerotium bataticola.

Gottlieb, David (University of Illinois, Urbana), and James L. Van Etten. Changes in fungi with age. I. Chemical composition of Rhizoctonia solani and Sclerotium bataticola. J. Bacteriol. 91:161-168. 1966.-The chemical composition of the mycelium of Rhizoctonia solani and Sclerotium bataticola was determined in cells of various ages. The percentage, per unit of dry weight, of soluble amino nitrogen, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), ribonucleic acid (RNA), ergosterol, and protein decreased with age in both fungi. Total lipids and fatty acids increased with age in S. bataticola but remained constant in R. solani. Total carbohydrate increased with age in R. solani and decreased in S. bataticola. Fewer changes with age were observed when the results were calculated in ratio to DNA. There was no change in the ratios of protein, RNA, and soluble amino nitrogen to DNA with age in either fungus, but the ergosterol-DNA ratio decreased. The total lipid-DNA ratio and the total fatty acid-DNA ratio increased with age in both fungi, whereas the total carbohydrate-DNA ratio increased in R. solani but remained constant in S. bataticola. Both fungi contained myristic, palmitic, palmitoleic, stearic, oleic, and linoleic acids. In addition, R. solani contained pentadecanoic acid, and S. bataticola had myristoleic, linolenic, and arachidic acids. No marked change in the fatty acid pattern of S. bataticola was observed with age, whereas in R. solani the percentage of linoleic acid per total fatty acids decreased slightly when oleic acid increased.