Species of Ascomycota and Basidiomycota show simple, multicellular development with differentiated tissues. For some fungi, DNA transformations, gene knockouts and knockdowns are routine.
The typical fungal genome size of 30–40 Mb is small by eukaryotic standards, which is why fungi have led the way as models for eukaryote genome sequencing with over 100 assembled genome sequences available. With the aim of enticing biologists to include fungi in their research, we note that many fungi have haploid genetics, and that those in cultivation are essentially immortal, two features that make it easier to associate traits with genotype, even for complex traits, than with Drosophila or Arabidopsis.
The Kingdom Fungi, home to molds, mushrooms, lichens, rusts, smuts and yeasts, comprises eukaryotes with remarkably diverse life histories that make essential contributions to the biosphere, human industry, medicine and research.
