An Introduction to Industrial Mycology [antikvár]

FOREWORD It is a truism to say that were all types of micro-organisms suddenly to die out, human and animal life as we know it to-day would be impossible. Dead vegetable and animal remains are continuously being broken down by biochemical reactions brought about by micro-organisms, until their constituent elements are returned to the economy of nature as carbon dioxide, ammonia, nitrates, etc., to recommence the synthetic cycle for which the green plants are responsible. The part played by the lower fungi, or " moulds " as they are more commonly known, in this chain of degradative processes is one of paramount importance. Further, in all industries handling organic materials, e.g. those concerned with food production, leather, textiles, wood, pharmaceuticals, etc., the danger of spoilage through growth of moulds is one of which all those engaged in these industries are acutely aware. Thus the control and prevention of mould grovrth becomes a major problem to which, in the interests of increased efficiency, more and more attention is being given. The harnessing of moulds for beneficial purposes, long established in some industries, as for example in the manufacture of Stilton, Gorgonzola and other types of cheese, has in recent years followed some very interesting lines. Thus citric acid, until this century obtained exclusively from the juice of citrus fruits, is now being made in thousands of tons per annum and in many different countries by growing chosen strains of the common black mould Aspergillus niger on sugar solutions, under carefully controlled conditions. The study of the biochemical changes, almost bewildering in their diversity, which can be brought about by moulds, is now a rapidly developing branch of biochemistry, and is attracting the attention of scientific workers in different parts of the world. To those who are actively concerned in any of the industrial or scientific pursuits I have mentioned—and many more examples could be given if these were needed—it is scarcely necessary for me to point out the paramount importance of some knowledge of the moulds themselves, and the more detailed and accurate this knowledge is, the better. Thousands of different species of moulds have been described and their differences in response to a particular