Chaetomium

Chaetomium sp. is found on a variety of substrates containing cellulose including paper and plant compost. Several species have been reported to play a major role in decomposition of cellulose-made materials. These fungi are able to dissolve the cellulose fibers in cotton and paper and thus cause the materials to disintegrate. The process is especially rapid under moist conditions. During the Second World War countries lost a great deal of equipment to these species. It is reported to be allergenic. It is an ascomycete; in most species, the spores are lemon-shaped, with a single germ pore. The spore column results from the breakdown of the asci within the body of the perithecium. The perithecia of Chaetomium are superficial and barrel-shaped, and they are clothed with dark, stiff hairs. It can produce an Acremonium-like state (imperfect stage) on fungal media.