hypha

American  

[hahy-fuh] / ˈhaɪ fə /

noun

hyphae plural

1. (in a fungus) one of the threadlike elements of the mycelium.

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hypha British  

/ ˈhaɪfə /

noun

1. any of the filaments that constitute the body (mycelium) of a fungus

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hypha Scientific  

/ hī′fə /

hyphae plural

1. One of the long slender tubes that develop from germinated spores and form the structural parts of the body of a fungus. In many species of fungi, hyphae are divided into sections by cross walls called septa. Each section contains at least one haploid nucleus, and the septa usually have perforations that allow cytoplasm to flow through the hypha. A large mass of hyphae is known as a mycelium, which is the growing form of most fungi. From time to time, hyphae develop reproductive structures that are partitioned from the hypha by holeless septa. In many species, these structures are microscopic; in others, they are visible and large. Mushrooms and shelf fungi are visible reproductive structures of fungi.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• hyphal
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• hyphae
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hypha

1865–70; < New Latin < Greek hyphḗ web

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hypha hyphae

In most phyla of fungi, tiny holes in the septa allow for the rapid flow of nutrients and small molecules from cell to cell along the hypha.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

Conidiospores are unicellular or multicellular spores that are released directly from the tip or side of the hypha.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

Figure 4. This bright field light micrograph shows the release of spores from a sporangium at the end of a hypha called a sporangiophore.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

Although individual hypha must be observed under a microscope, the mycelium of a fungus can be very large with some species truly being “the fungus humongous.”

From Textbooks ● Apr. 25, 2013

A protuberance then grows out from one side of the sphere, and rapidly increasing in length, assumes the character of a hypha.

From Discourses Biological and Geological Essays by Huxley, Thomas Henry

But not all hyphae are the same shape: some have rounded tips, while others are pointed.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 25, 2024

To explore this idea, they examined the growth rate of hyphae with different shapes to create a fitness landscape for hyphae.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 25, 2024

Following the spore-covered body down into the soil, they found a mummified spider swaddled in fungal filaments called hyphae.

From Scientific American ● Sep. 1, 2023

One mechanism involves constricting rings within the network of hyphae.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

In H. rutilans, however, both sexual organs are absent and the ascogenous hyphae arise apogamously from the ordinary hyphae of the mycelim.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3 "Frost" to "Fyzabad" by Various