Have you experienced horror when you opened a container of
your favorite food products only to find out a patch of disgusting looking fuzz
(usually in grey or green color) resting conveniently on the top?
Like most people, your reaction is reasonably
understandable.
Mold, by definition is a living organism from the family of
fungi. The hairy organism is one of the types of fungus that is different from
plants, bacteria, and animals. Technically, molds are decomposers of non-living
organic material such as wood, plants, and leaves. Mold is heterotrophic in
nature. It means that molds cannot produce food on its own, but retrieves it
from the surroundings. However, mold does not practically eat food, it only
absorbs nutrition. For this, mold enzymes break down the substance of food into
smaller molecules (organic) particles to absorb them.
This type of fungi is dominated by a composition called
hyphae. These are thread like fibers which mixes to form mycelium, hence, the
hairy appearance of mold. It can grow indoors and outdoors, thrive in water,
damp and humid environments. Mold can be found in almost any kind of
environment.
Mold: What they need to grow
Water is an essential factor for the growth of molds.
Besides water, mold needs food sources, temperature that is between 40 to 100 F
degrees and oxygen. As mold decomposes on dead biological material, it can
therefore grow on anything made of
materials made of wood and paper.
While mold cannot get food (nutrients) from inorganic
material such as plastic, metal, glass, and concrete, it can grow on dust
layers of organics available on the non organic surfaces. A damp or wet
material is perfect for mold to grow.
Mold: Different Types
There are many varieties of mold, a few of them are:
·
Rhizopus Stolonifer
It is one of the most common types of mold. They are usually
found on bread and are commonly known as black bread mold. It is also found on
other various foods and vegetables.
·
Penicillium
It is commonly found in water damaged structures and moist
foods.
·
Aspergillus
It has a considerable variety of carcinogenics, and is one
of the reasons of respiratory problems in homes when found indoors.
·
Xerophilic
They relatively grow in salty, dry, or sugary environments
where the activity of water is less than 0.85, while other mold needs higher
amount of moisture to grow.
Mold: Where do they come from?
When tiny root hair, hyphae extend, they help in growing
molds. Through this, small colonies of mold can spread out to cover a large
square feet of material. Mold can also give birth to spores that are like tiny
looking seeds.
These spores are able to survive any kind of weather
environment for mold to grow. Spores can be carried to new locations by water
or air, once they are released. When these spores travel to land on a damp
surface which has oxygen, food and temperature that suits, these spores will
start to grow. The ubiquitous nature of mold spores allow them to be present
almost everywhere.
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