We can see many beautiful and natural things around us, but there are some things that we can not see with our naked eyes. Some of these are microbes that are divided into many types according to their cell type, structure, etc. Fungi and Bacteria are two different and important microbes that exist everywhere in our world, but we can not see them.
Fungi vs Bacteria
The main difference between Fungi and Bacteria is that Fungi is eukaryotic cell means it has proper cell structure and its cell wall contain chitin on the other hand Bacteria is a prokaryotic cell means it does not have a proper structure like it lacks nucleus and cell organelles and its cell wall contain peptidoglycan.
Fungi are a kind of microbes that can be differentiated as they chitin in their cell wall. They are the type of eukaryotic cell, so they have a proper nucleus and many other cell organelles. They are heterotrophs as they are dependent on autotrophs for their food. They secrets digestive enzymes in the environment to get nutrients.
In contrast, Bacteria is also a kind of microbes. They have peptidoglycan in their cell wall. They are categorized as prokaryotes as they don’t have proper cellular structure and they lack nucleus and cell organelles. They are mostly heterotrophs, but there are some autotrophs in Bacteria as well.
Comparison Table Between Fungi and Bacteria
| Parameters of Comparison | Fungi | Bacteria |
| Definition | Fungi are eukaryotic cells with chitin in their cell wall. | Bacteria are prokaryotic cells with an incipient nucleus. |
| Size | Its size can be 2 to 10 micrometers. | Its size can be 0.5 to 5 micrometers. |
| Shape | It can have various shapes, but most of them are thread-like structures. | It has three different structures, i.e. round, rod-shaped and spiral. |
| pH | The best pH for the growth of fungi is 4 to 6 pH. | Bacteria prefer a neutral range of 6.5 to 7 pH. |
| Example | Yeast, mushrooms are examples of fungi. | Escherichia coli, Salmonella Typhi, Staphylococcus aureus, are examples of bacteria. |
What is Fungi?
Fungi are eukaryotic cells that have chitin in their cell wall. Fungi is a plural word. The singular of fungi is a fungus. Some fungi look green in color, but they do not do photosynthesis. They secret digestive enzymes into the environment and then absorb molecules to get nutrients as a portion of food. Hence they are heterotrophs.
Normally, fungi do not move from one place to another, but they grow and spread as means of traveling from one place to another, and some fungi in the form of spores can change their place from time to time with the help of air and water. They also work as decomposers in our ecosystem.
Fungi have some features like plants. For example, they are immobile and, in some cases, bears fruits like mushrooms. So earlier, it was considered in the plant kingdom, but after the invention of molecular methods for phylogenetic analysis, it is found to be different from plants, so now they are in a separate kingdom known as Fungi.
Fungi are also useful for us in many ways. The process of fermentation with the help of fungi helps in food preparations. They are used to prepare loaves of bread, cheese, wine, etc. They are also used to prepare medicines and antibiotics. Even after having lots of uses, some fungi are poisonous, so we should be careful while consuming fungi like mushrooms.