Penicillium

Penicillium is a genus of filamentous fungi whose species occur widely in soil and decaying matter. Some are used in cheese production, and Penicillium rubens produces the antibiotic penicillin.

Penicillium roqueforti: A Penicillium species used to ripen blue cheeses, including Roquefort and Gorgonzola. Its growth creates the blue veins and characteristic flavor of several cheeses.
Hypha: A threadlike fungal filament that grows and branches to form a network. Penicillium colonies expand through networks of these filaments.
Charles Thom: An American mycologist known for research and taxonomic work on Penicillium and other fungi. His monographs helped establish the modern study and classification of the genus.
Aspergillus: A genus of filamentous fungi that includes species used in fermentation and species that produce toxins. Its mold colonies can resemble Penicillium, but their spore-bearing structures differ.
Penicillium camemberti: A Penicillium species used to ripen soft cheeses such as Camembert and Brie. Its surface growth forms the white rind on these cheeses.
Mycelium: The interconnected mass of hyphae forming the vegetative body of a fungus. The fuzzy colony is the visible surface of Penicillium’s mycelium.
Alexander Fleming: A Scottish physician and bacteriologist who observed penicillin’s antibacterial effect in 1928. His observation began the history of Penicillium-derived penicillin as a medicine.
Eurotiales: An order of ascomycete fungi that includes Penicillium and Aspergillus. Penicillium belongs to this order of fungi, many of which grow on food.
Penicillium rubens: A Penicillium species that produces penicillin and was historically identified as Penicillium notatum. Its antibiotic production underlies the genus’s best-known medical application.
Conidiophore: A specialized fungal hypha that bears asexual spores called conidia. Penicillium’s characteristic brushlike structures are conidiophores.

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