Micromycete Lipids and Stress

Abstract

Among the living organisms, microscopic fungi are unique in their ability to occupy diverse ecological niches due to the evolutionarily formed mechanisms of adaptation to a broad range of climatic and technogenic factors. One approach to understanding the mechanisms of adaptation to changing environmental conditions is associated with lipid metabolism. The review provides a critical analysis of publications and our own experimental data on the variability of micromycete lipids under the influence of stress factors and of the possible related adaptive mechanisms. The functional, structural, and quantitative changes in fungal lipids were analyzed under the conditions of osmotic, thermal, and cold influences, as well as toxicity. Biochemical variations in the composition of phospholipids and other membrane lipids are characterized as diverse and ambiguous, depending on the degree of exposure, the initial lipid composition, genetic resistance of fungi, and their ability to adapt to extreme conditions. The role of lipid metabolism in the overall integral response of fungal cells to stress is discussed.