ALLERGIC REACTION: WHAT ARE MOULDS?

Moulds play an important role in nature’s ecological processes. They feed on organic matter, absorbing nutrients through their cell walls, and excreting enzymes. They thus breakdown and recycle organic matter, causing dead or decaying material to disintegrate and, in its turn, release nutrients into the environment.

Moulds grow in long filaments called mycelia, branching across or into the material on which they feed. They reproduce by producing spores which are carried invisibly in the air to land on other surfaces. It is the spores of moulds which, when inhaled, cause allergic reactions. There are 100,000 known species of moulds, but only a handful are known to cause allergic reactions.

Yeasts are related to moulds, being also members of the fungus family. Yeasts reproduce by budding off cells, or by splitting, rather than by disseminating spores. Some fungal organisms can be dimorphic they can be either yeast or mould in different conditions. Candida, for instance, behaves as a yeast when fed on a high sugar level, but is a mould in other situations.

Moulds have practical uses in industry. They are used to produce some antibiotics, and a range of acids (such as citric, malic and gluconic acid) that are used in food processing and pharmaceuticals. Some moulds are used in cheesemaking; blue cheeses are inoculated with a mould and the rind of soft cheeses like Camembert is produced by an inoculated fungus which grows on the surface of the cheese. Yeasts are used extensively in beer, wine and breadmaking. One mould, the mushroom, is eaten as a food itself. Moulds can also cause diseases in plants and humans as well as causing allergic reactions.

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