Question

Dikaryophase is a specific characteristic of
(a) All fungi
(b) Phycomycetes and ascomycetes
(c) Basidiomycetes and Deuteromycetes
(d) Ascomycetes and Basidiomycetes

Answer 1

Hint: A class of fungi that can reproduce both sexually and asexually excluding most primitive forms of fungi. In fungi like sac fungi and bracket fungi both the chromosomes live in the same cell at once in their life cycle.

Complete step by step answer:
All fungi do not show dikaryophase. Based upon the sexual spores fungi is classified into four subclasses:
Phycomycetes
Ascomycetes
Basidiomycetes
Deuteromycetes
In fungi such as ascomycetes and basidiomycetes, karyogamy is delayed and occurs just before meiosis. In the stage intervening between plasmogamy and karyogamy, the cells often contain two nuclei or dikaryon (n + n). Such cells are called dikaryotic cells. The phase is known as dikaryophase.
So, the correct answer is ‘Ascomycetes and Basidiomycetes’.

Additional information:
- Generally, fungi reproduce both sexually and asexually by spores.asexual reproduction is the most common method that produces genetically similar organisms.
- Fungi reproduce sexually when the conditions are poor and with fewer nutrients.
- All the classes of fungi mentioned above show both sexual and asexual reproduction except Deuteromycetes.
- All the fungi are multicellular except yeast which are unicellular
- Fungi are filamentous and the body consists of hyphae which is a long, thread-like structure.
- Most of the fungi are heterotrophic i., they depend on other organisms for food.
- Some of the fungi depend on the decaying waste materials of plants and animals for energy sources, such types of fungi are called saprophytes.
- Plasmogamy is the fusion of two motile gametes and non-motile gametes. If two nuclei fuse, it is called karyogamy
- Zygote in fungi undergo meiosis resulting in haploid spores

Note: Other names of Phycomycetes, Basidiomycetes, Ascomycetes, Deuteromycetes are algal fungi, club fungi, sac fungi, imperfect fungi respectively.
Sexual reproduction is completely absent in Deuteromycetes.