What is the Difference Between Mucor and Aspergillus

The key difference between Mucor and Aspergillus is that Mucor is a genus of zygomycetes fungi while Aspergillus is a genus of ascomycetes fungi.

Fungi are eukaryotic organisms that come under the Kingdom of Fungi. There are unicellular or multicellular species. They are mostly filamentous heterotrophic organisms that are considered very good decomposers in the soil. Chitin is a compound that is unique to the fungal cell wall. Mucor and Aspergillus are two types of well-known genera of fungi. Mucor belongs to the phylum Zygomycota while Aspergillus belongs to the phylum Ascomycota. Most importantly, Mucor species are usually not pathogenic to humans while some species of Aspergillus are human pathogens.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Mucor 
3. What is Aspergillus
4. Similarities – Mucor and Aspergillus
5. Mucor vs Aspergillus in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Mucor vs Aspergillus

What is Mucor?

Mucor is a genus of zygomycetes fungi. Such fungi are commonly present in the soil, rotten or spoiled vegetable or food surfaces and in digestive systems. They are fast-growing filamentous fungi that appear in white to grey colour. Furthermore, they are saprotrophic fungi that depend on decomposing organic matter in the environment. Mucor species reproduce via both sexual and asexual methods. Mucor reproduces asexually through fragmentation and sporangiophore formation. The sporangiophore of Mucor is branched. Upon maturity, the sporangiophore develops into a sporangium bearing asexual spores. Upon release, these asexual spores then develop into new functional mycelia. Sexual reproduction happens under harsh unfavourable conditions between two compatible mating types of Mucor (two opposing mating strains (type + and type –). Mating types produce gametangia from the hyphae to carry out sexual reproduction via conjugation.

Generally, Mucor species do not cause diseases in humans. However, some species can become opportunistic pathogens in immune-compromised people and cause mucormycosis, which is a rare disease.

What is Aspergillus?

Aspergillus is a genus of ascomycetes fungi that are commonly found in soil, organic matter, and other environments. This genus consists of about 300 identified filamentous species. Their hyphae are septate and hyaline. Most of the Aspergillus species reproduce asexually by the formation of asexual spores. Other species use sexual reproduction. Aspergillus species show great industrial importance. Their value in commercial-scale organic acid and enzyme production is enormous. Citric acid is one of the major organic acids produced by A. niger. Over 99 % of the global citric acid production is done by the use of Aspergillus fungal species. Moreover, using fermentation, Aspergillus species synthesize enzymes such as glucose oxidase, lysozyme, amylases, pectinases, proteases, and lactase. This is very useful in industries when producing enzymes on a commercial scale.

Furthermore, Aspergillus species are useful as a bio-adsorbent to detoxify and decolourize wastewater samples. Moreover, they are useful in the biotransformation of xenobiotics, bioremediation and as a cell protein for feed. Not only those, but certain Aspergillus species also act as potential biofertilizers, which can increase nutrients in the soil.

In addition, most of the Aspergillus species are less harmful. But some species cause aspergillosis, pneumonia, otomycosis, cutaneous infections, and pulmonary disease, etc.

What are the Similarities Between Mucor and Aspergillus?

• Mucor and Aspergillus are two fungal genera of Kingdom Fungi.
• They are filamentous multicellular fungi.
• Both are eukaryotic heterotrophic fungi.
• They are commonly found in soil and decompose organic matter.
• They reproduce via sexual and asexual methods.
• Both types of fungi show commercial use.

What is the Difference Between Mucor and Aspergillus?

Mucor is a genus of zygomycetes fungi while Aspergillus is a genus of ascomycetes fungi. So, this is the key difference between Mucor and Aspergillus. Mucor reproduces asexually via the formation of sporangiospores while Aspergillus reproduces asexually via the formation of conidia. Furthermore, Aspergillus produces asci while Mucor does not produce asci.

The below infographic lists the differences between Mucor and Aspergillus in tabular form for side by side comparison.

Summary – Mucor vs Aspergillus

Mucor and Aspergillus are two fungal genera. Both genera include filamentous fungi. Mucor is a genus of zygomycota, while Aspergillus is a genus of ascomycota. Mucor produces sporangiospores during asexual reproduction, while Aspergillus produces conidia for asexual reproduction. Moreover, Mucor produces zygospores during sexual reproduction but Aspergillus produces ascospores during sexual reproduction. Compared to Mucor, Aspergillus has a great commercial value. Thus, this is the summary of the difference between Mucor and Aspergillus.

Reference:

1. “Classification of Fungi.” Lumen.
2. “Mucor.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Sept. 2021.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Sporangia of mucor” By Michael Antoni – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo Aspergillus fumigatus 01” By Ufficio Comunicazione, Azienda Ospedaliera SS. Antonio e Biagio e Cesare Arrigo, Alessandria and Biblioteca Biomedica Centro di Documentazione – (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia