Fungi in hot and cold deserts with particular reference to microcolonial fungi

The occurrence of fungi in soils of the hot deserts and the dry areas of the Antarctic and Arctic are described. A number of filamentous fungi and yeasts have been documented from both – the hot and cold habitat – however, investigations on the abundance and activity of the filamentous hyphomycetes isolated are still missing. There is striking evidence that many ubiquitous species just survive in hot desert soil by their spores, however, without any physiological activity. There is also reasonable suspicion that man-made contamination of the Antarctic deserts might be the reason for finding a broad distribution of Penicillium and other ubiquitous fungi in soil and air. Basidiomycetous yeasts are reported to be endemic in the dry valley of Antarctica. Unrivaled conquerors of the desert environment are black, microcolonial fungi that are part of the epi- and endolithic community in hot and cold arid and semi-arid habitats. These fungi are one of the most stress-tolerant eukaryotic life forms on Earth.

► Viable and cultivable spores of hyphomycetous fungi are present in soils of hot and cold deserts.
► By now little is known about the in-situ activity and ecology of desert fungi.
► The epi- and endolithic micro-community in deserts is dominated by black microcolonial fungi.
► Genomic and proteomic studies are in progress to proof the activity of fungi in deserts.