Question

Which of the following statements is correct regarding sexual reproduction in Basidiomycetes?
(a) Plasmogamy occurs by the fusion of two somatic cells of different strains.
(b) Karyogamy and meiosis occur in the basidium producing four basidiospores.
(c) Basidiospores are exogenously produced on the basidium.
(d) All of these

Answer 1

Hint: The reproduction in basidiomycetes occurs in the specialized structure that is formed due to the fusion of two mycelia which leads to the formation of hyphae. This leads to the division of which results in clam formation.

Complete step by step answer:
The sexual reproduction in Basidiomycetes occurs due to the specialized structures of the fruiting body called a basidium. They are of different strains that come together and fuse to form hyphae. A binucleate hypha is formed. The basidia undergo nuclear divisions to form basidiospores.
- Basidiomycetes are also known as the club fungi, due to the production of the spores that are club- shaped.
- They are one of the largest divisions that belong to the subkingdom Dikarya and come under the group of the higher fungi.
- Basidiomycetes are the filamentous fungi with hyphae and form club- shaped cells called basidia for sexual reproduction.
- The basidia contain specialized spores called basidiospores.
- The fungi consist of basidia as a fruiting body that undergoes meiosis and forms four basidiospores.
- These basidiospores disperse and germinate to form a mycelium of two different strains that consist of two different mating types (+ and - ).
- These two different strains of mycelium fuse together to form a structure called a dikaryotic mycelium while this process is known as plasmogamy.
- This again forms a complete organism and then again goes under meiosis. This completes the life cycle of the basidiomycetes.
So, the correct answer is ‘All of these’.

Note: The dikaryon is a feature of the nucleus which is found in fungi unique to various species. It is a primitive character in the subkingdom Dikarya, which includes both the Ascomycetes and Basidiomycetes. The croziers of ascomycetes and the clamp collection of basidiomycetes are responsible for the maintenance of dikaryon. The term dikaryon is derived from the Greek word di meaning ‘two’ and karyon meaning ‘nut’.