This is a place for the random thoughts and musings of Brendan Hodkinson (Lichenology, Duke University). Feel free to comment and join the conversation!
squa·mule (skwä
-my
l)
noun.
A small, loosely attached thallus lobe of certain lichens.
[Latin squ
mula, diminutive of squma, scale.]
[Latin squ
mula, diminutive of squma, scale.]Squamules.blogspot is part of 'Squam Blogs', a division of 'Squamules Unlimited'.
It's interesting to think about how secondary metabolites from fungi might drive the evolution of associated bacteria. I wonder how much is "intentional" towards the bacteria and how much only incedential (i.e. actually intended to fight off other fungi). I gues its one of those things that would be incredible difficult to figure out, but so fascinating to know.
ReplyDeleteHey Bernadette, Thanks for being the first to comment! We do know that certain secondary metabolites have antibiotic properties, so this might serve to 'clear the playing field' so that very specific lineages are able to thrive in a unique environment where there is not as much competition, or at least the competitive forces are very different. Understanding the details of the interactions and how they have evolved will of course require a lot of in-depth experiments... but we are just at the beginning of this! -Brendan
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