Chapter 3 – Fungal Growth on Solid Substrates: A Physiological Overview

Abstract Fungi are considered the microorganisms most adapted to growth on the solid substrates because their filamentous and apical growth allow colonization of the solid particles to obtain the both carbon source and mineral nutrients by enzymatic substrate degradation. The elongation at the tips, new branches formation, and variation in metabolic activity along hyphal segments and the importance of the tip in the protein secretion are discussed in the context of the published information. The influence of low water activity (a w ) in solid-state fermentation of the fungal growth, expression, secretion, and properties of extracellular enzymes is addressed as well as the production and secretion of the other metabolite.