Some Mushrooms are Not So Fun-gi

Mushroom day is on 15 October 2021.

When I was in graduate school, I worked in a mycology lab researching the human pathogenic yeast, Candida albicans. Mycology is the study of fungi, which include yeasts, molds and mushrooms.

I mush tell you, there are over 10 000 varieties of mushrooms on Earth. Many are edible and part of our diets, but some mushrooms are scary and not so fun-gi... what I mean is that they contain poisons that are strong enough to kill us. The Not So Fun-gi Poster shows the dark side of mushrooms, illustrating some of the most dangerous toxin molecules from various fungi. Unfortunately for most of these toxins, there are no known antidotes.

Neither an animal nor a plant, fungi are fascinating organisms. In popular culture, the mushroom Amanita was even the inspiration for the red and white polka dot super mushroom in the Super Mario Video Game.