Have you ever seen mold this cute?

These are two molds: Aspergillus niger and Penicillium rubens. Click for more pictures!

All picutres taken by Marta Cortesão

#1 – Penicillium rubens colony in potato dextrose medium. – DLR, Cologne, Germany.

#2 – Aspergillus niger colony of a mutant strain, grown in minimum medium. A defect in melanin biosyntesis creates brown spores instead of black ones! – DLR, Cologne, Germany.

#3 – Aspergillus niger wild-type colony grown in minimum medium. Somehow it grew in a shape of a heart! – DLR, Cologne Germany.

#4 – Aspergillus niger microcolony, grown in minimum medium supplemented with caspofungin seen by phase contrast microscopy. – DLR, Cologne, Germany

#5 – Aspergillus niger wild-type conidiophore seem through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). – RKI, Berlin, Germany.

#6 – Aspergillus niger wild-type colony fragment cross-section, seen through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). – RKI, Berlin, Germany.

#7 – Aspergillus niger conidiophore head and spores of a melanin mutant strain, seen through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). – RKI, Berlin, Germany.

#8 – Aspergillus niger spores seen through scanning electron microscopy (SEM). – RKI, Berlin, Germany.

#9 – Penicillium rubens biofilm formed in potato dextrose medium attached to an aluminium coupon. Stained with calcofluor white and acridine orange. Seen through a fluorescence microscope. – CU Boulder, Colorado, USA.

#10 – Aspergillus niger wild-type grown in minimum medium, on a filter. Two colonies grew in a BB8-like shape (somehow a Star Wars moldy cosplay :p) – DLR, Cologne, Germany.