10 Pheromone Action in the Fungal Groups Chytridiomycetes and Zygomycetes and in the Oophytes
In the three organismic groups considered, one noticeable observation concerning pheromone action recurs. The sexual interactions in large systematic units are mediated by the same or very similar substances at least at the level of genera and probably families in chytridiomycetes and oophytes and even in a whole class in zygomycetes. Nevertheless, different levels of specificity exist within each group, enabling recognition of a compatible mating partner belonging to the same species. In oophytes and zygomycetes, species specificity is, at a first level of recognition, realised by using different derivatives and isomers of a common basic compound and, subsequently and most probably more specifically, via interactions of individual surface components.