Interactions between fungi and other microbes

Though there are mutualistic relationships between fungi and organisms from other kingdoms, none have yet been described for fungi in nature. Fungi engage in a range of aggressive interspecific interactions, which can occur at a distance or following contact, due to parasitism or production of volatile and diffusible chemicals, including enzymes, toxins and other antifungal metabolites. Interactions between fungi and bacteria are many and varied, and these microorganisms affect each other’s growth, survival and virulence. These effects can be negative, positive or mutualistic. Intracellular viruses are widespread in fungi in all phyla. The host range of a virus type is very narrow, and frequency of infection within a species is variable, but sometimes high. Most viruses cause few or no obvious symptoms, but large beneficial and adverse effects have been reported. Fungi also interact with protists feeding on some and killing others which have ingested them