Journal Entry #2

Xylaria polymorpha, commonly known as Dead man’s fingers, is a type of saprotrophic fungus that received its common name for its fruits having the resemblance of human fingers, or in my own opinion, the zombie hands sticking out of the ground in plants vs. Zombies. The fungus is found across North America and Europe, typically growing around wide varieties of dead or decaying woods, which was the same condition these creatures were found in. The fungus also may “attack” trees that are under stress such as any possible insufficiency in living requirements or under potential disease, quickly colonizing around it (Vogini & Powell, 2013).
The fruiting bodies of the fungus are not considered edible, its texture is described to be very wood-like and the mushroom itself also contains a few compounds that are similar to the most dangerous mushrooms in the world (Tu, 2018). A study conducted in 2007 also showed that the fruiting bodies of Xylaria polymorpha contains two particular compounds, xylarinic acids A and B, which have shown excellent ability in inhibiting growth of other pathogenic plant fungi such as Pythium ultinum, Magnaporthe grisea and Fusarium oxysporium, making the fungi a good possible choice for fungal control (Collins, 2021). However, further study had also shown that the compounds showed no antibacterial or cytotoxic effects (Jang et al., 2007).

Posted on October 17, 2021 10:47 AM by erlenneli09