Fungal cells

Fungal cells are the cells that make up fungi such as yeast, moulds, and mushrooms.

• Basic parts: Like plant and animal cells, they have a cell membrane, cytoplasm, and a nucleus (so they are not like bacteria, which lack a well-defined nucleus).
• Cell wall present: Fungal cells have a cell wall outside the cell membrane, which gives them shape and protection. (In fungi, this wall is mainly made of chitin, not cellulose like in plants.)
• No chloroplasts: They do not have chloroplasts, so they cannot make food by photosynthesis the way green plants do.
• How they get food: Fungi are heterotrophs—they absorb nutrients from other materials. Many fungi release enzymes onto food (like bread, fruit, or dead leaves) and then absorb the simpler substances.
• Different forms: Some fungi are unicellular (like yeast), while many are multicellular and made of long thread-like structures called hyphae that form a network called mycelium.

These features help explain why fungi are grouped separately from plants: they may have a cell wall like plants, but they do not photosynthesise and instead depend on absorbing food from their surroundings.