Economic Importance Of Fungi Spirogyra.docx

ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF FUNGI SPIROGYRA: 1.They can be used as foods in the form of Mushrooms and Morels. 2.Used in the industry for making bakery products. 3.Used in the production of wine by fermentation process. ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF ALGAE: 1.Algae are photosynthetic microorganisms.They can prepare their own food. 2.Algae are used as foods as they are rich in carbohydrates,vitamins and other inorganic substances. 3.Spirogyra are rich source of food. 3.Some algae are found to be rich in protein content. 4.Used in the preparation of icecream and jellies.e.g:Gelidium. 5.Used for chewing purpose instead of tobacco. 6.Used to increase the fertility of the soil.eg:Nostoc,Anabena. 7.Used for the preparation of medicines.

economic importance of red algae (Polysophonia): The red algae furnish food for sea animals. Some species are fed to cattle. They have also been regularly used as human food. Porphyra is an

important genus used as food by the Japanese and Chinese Americans. Rhodymenia palmata commonly known as Dulse, is boiled in milk in Ireland and then eaten. Polysaccharides which are important agents of medicinal and industrial use are obtained from the cell walls of many red algae. An extract of Chondrus crispus which is known as carragenin finds many uses. It is used in the preparation of chocolate milk and various pharmaceuticals including laxatives and cosmetics. The striking use of red algae is in the manufacture of agar. It is a dried gelatinous and bleached extract obtained from certain red algae (species of Gelidium and Gracilaria). Rhodymenia is one of the most used red algae for agar extraction. Agar is used in medicine as laxative and as culture medium for growth of bacteria and fungi. Calcareous red algae like Lithothamnion, Lithophyllum, Porolithon and Goniolithon play an important role in the formation of coral reefs.

Economic Importance of Pinnularia (Diatoms): The importance of diatoms must not be overlooked. These tiny organisms have been around for billions of years and play major roles in chemical and biological processes. Diatoms are estimated to be responsible for 20% to 25% of all the organic carbon fixation, are major sources of atmospheric oxygen, and are a major food source for aquatic microorganisms and insect larva (anonymous, 1999). Tiffany (1968) writes that marine diatoms are considered so important that they have been called "grass of the sea". This is because diatoms are major contributors to primary productivity in the oceans and create a beginning to the food chain. Another important use of diatoms in the biological realm is in water quality testing. Research by Dixit et al (1999) show that diatoms can be used for present water quality but also used to

determine former water quality and trends over the years. The sediments of lakes and rivers hold chemical and biological clues to the environment and water quality of the past and present. Diatoms are one of these clues. Because diatoms are ecologically diverse in almost every freshwater habitat, the dead and living diatoms can be found in the substrate. Diatoms in the first centimeter represent the current condition of the water, while the diatoms found in deeper sediment are representative of past water quality. The high reproductive rates of diatoms makes them respond quickly to environmental changes and many diatom species, as well, have specific tolerances for water quality. An important result of this research is that diatoms can be used to determine former water quality. This means that pre-colonial water quality can be estimated and used as a baseline to work from in determining anthropogenic effects on water quality. Diatoms help biologists see trends from past to present based on the sheer number, diversity and tolerance of diatoms in the sediment (Dixit et al, 1999)

Economically and industrially, diatoms are of huge importance. Billions of years of diatom frustules being naturally fossilized has created huge deposits of these shells or diatomaceous earth particularly in western United States. One deposit in Lompoc, California is as deep as 1400 feet and covers and area of twelve square miles (Alexopoulos, 1967). These deposits are mined to be used as filtering aids, abrasives, cleansers, and paints. Other deposits hold pockets of oil. It is estimated that a significant portion of the world's oil supply comes from diatom fossil beds (Prescott, 1968). For the average person, all this means that the wine we drink may have been filtered with the aid of diatom fossils, or the toothpaste we use may clean our teeth with the help of diatom fossils as an abrasive, and the gas we use to drive our cars may all come from a diatomaceous origin.

Refrences: Quora.com and wiki pedia