Mold Quiz

c) 96. A clinical survey discovered mold in mucus of 96% of patients suffering from chronic sinus infections, a disease which annually impacts more than 20 million adults U.S.

a) they look like the Christian Holy Water sprinkler device, called aspergillum.

(up) Aspergillum (Photo Source: Pearson Scott Foresman, Wikipedia); (down) Aspergillus niger conidiophore (Photo source: Kathie Hodge, Flickr).

c). Penicillium fungi are the most frequent cause of the green mold spots on old bread. Mouldy bread is not safe to eat as some green mould species can produce mycotoxins.

(Photo source: Henry Mühlpfordt, Wikimedia)

a). The blue veins are the result of Penicillium molds forming colonies in the presence of air. This cheese, even though technically spoiled, is considered safe and a delicacy.

c) Because they look like paintbrushes – The entire genus Penicillium got its name because their spore-bearing structures look like paintbrushes, which are called “penicilli” in Latin.

Penicillium sp. conidiophore (Photo source: AJC1, Wikimedia).

b). Penicillin, the first antibiotic, was isolated and discovered in 1928 by Dr. Alexander Fleming from Penicillium mold.

e) All of the above. Prolonged exposure to molds can induce many different health problems, with intensity depending from mild irritations in healthy people to life-threatening infections in immunocompromised patients.

c) 600 000. Furthermore, according to the UNICEF statistics, of all pneumonia-related mortalities of children under the age of five, half can be traced to air pollution.

The correct answer is 8%, and the most common types (in two-thirds of cases) belong to the Penicillium/Aspergillus group.

c). Moisture is the crucial ingredient for mold to thrive. Generally, the most common reasons for indoor mold spread are plumbing and roof leaks, wet basements, bad yard drainage, and high humidity.