Oomycota or oomycetes form a distinct phylogenetic lineage of fungus.
Oomycetes occupy both saprophytic and pathogenic lifestyles and include some of the most notorious
pathogens of plants, causing devastating diseases such as late blight of potato and sudden oak death. They are also often
referred to as water mold.
Oomycota or oomycetes form a distinct phylogenetic lineage of fungus–like eukaryotic microorganisms.
They are filamentous, microscopic, absorptive organisms that reproduce both sexually and asexually. Oomycetes occupy both saprophytic and pathogenic lifestyles – and include some of the most notorious pathogens of plants, causing devastating diseases such as late blight of potato and sudden oak death. They are also often referred to as water molds , although the water–loving nature which led to that name is not true of most species, which are terrestrial pathogens.
Most of the oomycetes produce two distinct types of spores. The main dispersive spores are asexual, self–motile spores called zoospores, which are capable of chemotaxis (movement toward or away from a chemical signal, such as those released by potential food sources) in surface water (including precipitation on plant surfaces). A few oomycetes produce aerial asexual spores that are distributed by wind. They also produce sexual spores, called oospores, that are translucent, double–walled, spherical structures used to survive adverse environmental conditions.