What is Difference Between Molds And Yeasts?

Differences Between Molds And Yeasts

Difference Between Molds And Yeasts is that Molds are filamentous, that is, they have an “aerial” vegetative mycelium and a “deep” mycelium. (They are fungi that commonly appear in food, especially lemons or oranges). The mycelium has structures called “hyphae” which may or may not be buried (divided). Examples of filamentous fungi: Penicillium sp., Aspergillus flavus, etc.

whereas Yeasts are less complex and do not have mycelia, their typical colonies are like those of bacteria and are widely used in the fermentation of alcoholic beverages, for example, Saccharomyces cerevisiae.
Both grow in acidic environments and are psychotropic organisms, that is, they grow at low temperatures (-5 to 5 ° C), even when their optimum growth temperature is around 18 ° C.

First, we must be clear that both yeasts and molds are a type of fungi of the eukaryotic class, which are basically organisms that have a cell nucleus and organelles that are surrounded by a membrane. In both cases they are opportunistic organisms, which somehow act as parasites in sources of organic matter, that is, they can be reproduced in food, however, these two life forms are different in their structure, as well as in their growth and its playback modes.

In the case of molds, these are filamentous, which means that they have a deep and aerial vegetative mycelium, which usually appear in food. This mycelium has certain structures called “hyphae” which may or may not be divided, giving an appearance of filamentous, among which we have the Penicillium sp., Aspergillus flavus, etc.

On the other hand, yeasts are much less complex and do not have mycelia, so they are found in typical colonies, which are like those of bacteria, and are also widely used in the fermentation processes of alcoholic beverages, such as Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, which is used in the beer industry.

It can also be said that both tend to grow in acidic environments and are also psychotropic organisms, which means that they grow at low temperatures between -5 ºC to 5 ºC, although their optimum growth temperature is around 18 ºC. On the other hand there are macroscopic fungi, the same ones that are heterotrophic, that is, they are not able to synthesize their own food, so they obtain it from other organisms, and also the main component of their cell wall is chitin, being organisms which have cells and defined nuclei (eukaryotes) unlike yeasts.

It can also be said that yeasts are organisms that are formed by a single cell, which is generally round or oval, while molds have a completely multicellular structure that, seen under a microscope, look like strands with many branches or hyphae. The appearance of molds seen with the naked eye is completely different from that of yeasts. Molds tend to be much more colorful and can have a woolly or hairy texture while a colony of yeasts is colorless and generally smooth, so the difference between these types of fungi is clear to the naked eye.

As for its reproduction, most yeasts reproduce by means of a process called budding, which means that they generate gems or buds in the stem cell, while their nucleus tends to divide and a part moves to say bud, the same which then separates to function as an independent cell. On the other hand, molds reproduce in sexual and asexual form by means of the spores, which are specialized aerial cells, which move to a substrate and then grow either on or under the surface of the substrate, where once the appropriate conditions exist, the spore germinates, emerging from it a first hypha, whose extension and branching is becoming a mycelium, where also the growth rate of the hyphae of a fungus is very fast.

It should also be noted that although both molds and yeasts reproduce in hot and humid conditions, molds tend to tolerate a greater range of acidity or pH than yeasts, they live from 2 to a value of 9 pH, while their Optimum pH is approximately 5.6, which is why molds can pose a greater danger when it comes to food spoilage and also in disinfection conditions, due to the spores they form.

Both molds and yeasts have useful applications, such that molds are useful for the decomposition of organic matter in the soil, which implies that it is considered as an essential element in the process of any compost pile. On the other hand in yeasts, its usefulness lies in the ability to ferment and produce ethanol, which implies in the same way that they are considered as key ingredients in the fermentation of fruit juice, production of alcoholic beverages, as well as in bakery products.

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