Fungi: mycelia, mushrooms & more

Since 2020, Loop Biotech has been making biodegradable caskets out of mycelium, the root-like structure of mushrooms, and hemp. Unlike traditional wooden caskets, which are often treated with chemicals that leech into the soil, the company’s offerings are made of natural materials that enrich the soil as they biodegrade—a process that only takes 45 days after burial.

So far, Loop Biotech has sold about 2,500 caskets in Europe—primarily in the Netherlands, but also in Germany and other parts of central Europe. But Ancker-Robert’s father, Mark Ancker, has just become the first person in the U.S. to be buried in Loop Biotech’s mycelium casket, called the Living Cocoon. “It was dignified, and beautiful,” says Ancker-Robert, who buried her father in a forest clearing on his property. “I have confidence that my dad will be fully part of the garden by winter.”

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It is estimated that only 155,000 of the roughly 2–3 million fungal species on the planet have been formally described. Now, a review published in Current Biology shows that as much as 83% of ectomycorrhizal species are so-called dark taxa.

Making a discovery with the potential for innovative applications in pharmaceutical development, a West Virginia University microbiology student has found a long sought-after fungus that produces effects similar to the semisynthetic drug LSD, which is used to treat conditions like depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction.

Singapore’s ultra-clean air encourages fungi to flourish in unique ways—showcasing surprising fungal diversity in a thriving urban ecosystem.

Fungal paper batteries could reduce e-waste, but they’re still a long way from reality

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25:25 builder

31:46 designer, mycologist

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Mycelium Thinking CIC is an arts-led 'radical connection' network. We explore and promote the deeper community ties needed to co-create more flourishing futures for both people and planet.

Stockholm-based Studio TOOJ has designed surreal Duk collection made of wood and mycelium that give illusion of cloth draped furniture.

Mushroom mushroom seen on a hike a while back

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Mushrooms in 19th-century watercolors: The paintings of a self-taught female mycologist are featured at the New York State Museum.

Since time immemorial, plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi have coexisted in a mutually beneficial relationship. The fungi colonize plant roots and help them absorb nutrients. In return, plants provide the fungi with the carbon they need.

Researchers have used a fungus and bacteria to create rigid, living structures similar to bone and coral, which could one day be used as a self-repairing building material

Watch nutrients flow through an underground circulatory system that connects fungi and plants. A new study shows how these networks form.

A Brittany, France-based duo is making leaps and bounds toward mycelium-core board production.

A team of scientists led by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed "fungi tiles" that could one day help to bring the heat down in buildings without consuming energy.

Researchers reveal Prototaxites, a giant Devonian fossil, was not a fungus or plant but a unique extinct lineage.

Deforestation, farming and climate-fueled fires are driving increasing threats to fungi, the lifeblood of most plants on Earth, the International Union for Conservation of Nature warned Thursday.

COLOMBO — In July 2023, heavy rains continued in southern Sri Lanka for days, soaking the lush greenery of the village of Hapugala in Galle. Amid the downpour, journalist and naturalist Sajeewa Wijeweera received an unexpected call — not from the wild, but from just across his garden. His wife, Sirangika Lokukaravita, had spotted something strange emerging from the wet soil: a vivid red mushroom with a bulbous base, bizarre and eye-catching in form.

Fungi are among the most important organisms on Earth. Even though most of the world's described 157,000 fungal species are only visible with a microscope, these organisms are essential to our ecosystems, our societies and economies.