![]() | This page, Mold, is a general article about mold. As such, the main goal is to answer the question "what is mold?", i.e. the biology of mold. Issues relating to humans are also discussed, but are kept to short summaries. Human related mold issues are discussed in detail in other articles, e.g. Mold health issues, Mold prevention and Mold growth, assessment, and remediation. |
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This should prbly be a disambiguation page instead
Also its a little short and we should decide on a spelling (not that i can talk!) --Davelane 23:09, 5 Nov 2004 (UTC)
I agree this should be something like an annotated disambiguation page, the problem being that there are thousands of species of mold, so it's almost impossible to generalize about them (imagine saying "breathing a gas confers health benefits"). The definition of mold on this page includes almost all fungi that aren't yeasts, so that could use a tweak too. Where to begin!? ----
Toxic Mold should certainly be merged here, and some of its bits should go to Indoor Air Quality or Growth In Buildings. The Toxic Mold page confounds aerosols/volatile organics with ingested mycotoxins. ----
I deleted "The war on mold in kickapoo is killing children!!!" I don't understand this at all -- if this is relevent can it be explained better --Davelane 01:05, 15 Nov 2004 (UTC)
It seems "The war on mold in kickapoo is killing children!!!" relates to a mold infection at Kickapoo High School according to this article: http://mold-help.org/content/view/245/ This is, however, completely rubbish to put in an encyclopedia. Link to the toxicity of fungae is already included.
Toxic mold deserves its own page. It is specific enough and important enough to justify seperate page. Just make sure the Toxic mold page doesn't repeat the same information as mold page. Repliedthemockturtle 23:10, 14 July 2007 (UTC)Reply
Toxic mold does not deserve it's own page. It's just marketing/scare language. Most things are toxic - at the right levels, even oxygen. 65.100.39.186 17:06, 30 August 2007 (UTC) andymccabe(-)netzero.netReply
IDisagree with merge. They are different, just like we have different pages for poison frog and frog. Each article is informative, yet some of the value of the discussion of toxic mold would be lost if the articles were merged, as well as the focus of the mold article becoming more blurry. Don't merge--expand both articles. It's not like we don't have the space. TeamZissou 08:29, 18 September 2007 (UTC)Reply
We need to discuss penecillin here, I think, at least breifly. Or at least link it. Lotusduck 19:20, 13 November 2005 (UTC)lotusduckReply
penecilin is the one that is good, right??
Penicillin is a medicine that is useful. Not totally sure what it's used for, but it's good. --Jeremy 19:21, 25 February 2006 (UTC)Reply
Resolved
This article "does not" belong here ie it's filed under the title "kitchen gadgets" ... I linked to this article expecting to view information concerning "food" molds ... not "bacteria" molds ...
Thanks for your efforts ...
24.108.71.105 (talk) 16:00, 27 July 2010 (UTC)Reply
Issues regarding Toxic mold, human health are now discussed in Mold health issues. For this reason I moved the EPA and NPIC links to Mold health issues. I also moved health discussion items to Talk:Mold health issues. Repliedthemockturtle 20:17, 4 October 2007 (UTC)Reply
For issues regarding killing of mold, ec, refer to Mold growth, assessment, and remediation. For discussion of these issues go to Talk:Mold growth, assessment, and remediation. Repliedthemockturtle 20:17, 4 October 2007 (UTC)Reply
Think back like 10 years ago..please, the name of this game has been haunting me for years! I remember playing it on the Mac but it could have been on the PC too. You could name and choose 4 different characters from a selection of different palettes(man, woman, and I think there were animals too). You were stuck in this dungeon, where you found many things lying around like weapons such as a morning star, throwing knives, swords, potions, spell scrolls. You could even pick up MOLD and eat it to restore your health. You could click on an 'eye' to rest your characters too. Yet there were giant ants, spiders, and plants that would attack you not only as you moved but if you were just waiting in an area. There were also locked doors, a large map, and many other things you could search and throw in your inventory. The game was a DEMO that let you buy the full version too. PLEASE HELP! —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jeydo (talk • contribs) 21:53, 8 April 2008 (UTC)Reply
° So, I've always been curious: I know mold probably just doesn't spontaniously come into existence, so how does it suddenly appear and grow, especially in a closed environment like a refrigerator? Are there microscopic spores (fairly ubiquitously) in the air which attach to damp surfaces and begin to grow, or something like that? I was expecting a little background (or at least a link to something) about a "life cycle", but it was only hinted at / implied. I hope someone who knows could put a fuller description.
In reply to above. Yes you are correct, there are masses of fungal spores in the air and you will inhale them frequently.
° I think that there should be more information of the different types of mold, organizing them by appearance (photos, descriptions of colour, what it usually grows on, etc.) and discussing their possible effects on people who are exposed to it. For example something like: "Purple mold which grows on rice can cause difficulty breathing, here is a picture of what it looks like." Surely there is someone out there who knows all about mold ...?
How about mentioning Rye mold, ("Ergot"?), famous as the natural source of LSD? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 199.175.128.1 (talk) 17:43, 12 February 2008 (UTC)Reply
You mention that mold is used in the production of sausages. Yet the sausage article states that it is a bacteria Lactobacillus that gives sausage its flavor, and does not mention mold at all. Can you resolve this? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jania100 (talk • contribs) 19:49, 26 February 2008 (UTC)Reply
There is a great deal of confusion arising from a shorthand notion that spores are the vectors of mycotoxins. Spores are not the only carriers of mycotoxins. But a lot of people refer to spores since it is easier to do so; easier to explain.
Furthermore, some people do develop allergic reactions to spores. Perhaps this should be pointed out. Note that the mycotoxins are the real killers, so it is important to differentiate between these and spores.
So the statement:"The numerous spores released by mold do not themselves cause significant harm in humans" is correct. Some people can develop first level sneezing and allergic reactions.
A previous statement, now edited out, said: "Some molds are particularly serious in this respect, because their spores are important causes of allergies (they are allergens); also, the spores of some fungi like Stachybotrys release potent toxins into the lungs when inhaled; Stachybotrys spores can cause very severe symptoms and lung lesions in children." It is the mycotoxins, not the spores.
Q: what size are spores compared to pollens?
Q: Does mold cause brain damage? I get mixed results when I search at Google.
People are always calling into Car Talk and asking what they can do to remove the moldy smell. They always say that if there's mold (the type that will grow on your auto carpets anyway), you can only really kill it with two things, sunlight (intense and long term) and bleach. While the Toxic mold article mentions some ways of generally killing mold, some of the remedies listed only shrink the colony (like ventilation) and won't actually kill it. So I came to this article to see if what those two lunkheads was true (since there's usually a lot of mold in their heads). O how I'd like a mycologist to come here and add some good stuff to this article! What definitely kills mold?? 82.93.133.130 06:16, 23 January 2007 (UTC)Reply
Only extreme heat can kill spores. Not freezing. Not products. I wrote that in, around about Fall 2006, but it is now lost, in summer 2007.
i think that the history of mold should be in this topic.everyone knows what it is and what it does,but no one knows how it came to be. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 75.82.157.80 (talk) 01:12, 1 February 2007 (UTC).Reply
that would explain more about mold--- it is a good idea
what do you mean by history? do you mean the evolution of mold? Repliedthemockturtle 20:17, 4 October 2007 (UTC)Reply
At the top of the page it lists three different types of mold ("Molds do not form a specific taxonomic or phylogenetic grouping, but can be found in the divisions Zygomycota, Deuteromycota and Ascomycota."). Is there a way to summarize the differences?
"(1) Spores: Both our indoor and outdoor environment have mold spores present. There is no such thing as a mold free environment."
Does the moon count? Is there mold in the far reaches of space? What about volcanoes and nuclear reactors? Hate to be picky, but maybe a qualifier is in order. Here's a suggestion:
"(1) Spores: Both our indoor and outdoor environment have mold spores present. There is no such thing as a mold free environment in Earth's biosphere." — Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.152.208.1 (talk) 02:14, 27 May 2007 (UTC)Reply
Someone's spamming this page.
189.192.127.140 (talk) 05:07, 12 March 2008 (UTC)Reply
Someone wrote: "mold is very gross try eating it" -- please correct it, it's not very professional. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 64.180.126.151 (talk) 23:41, 19 November 2009 (UTC)Reply
Whenever we chuck food down the toilet that is mouldy, we have a hard time flushing it because it floats. Is there a scientific explanation for this? 125.236.191.140 (talk) 08:57, 22 June 2008 (UTC)Reply
It looks like an unbearable face —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sasuke487 (talk • contribs) 01:10, 16 March 2010 (UTC)Reply
This article deals with mold in specific environments and would be best kept separate.--Felix Folio Secundus (talk) 20:08, 13 November 2010 (UTC)Reply
Is 'Mold' the correct US spelling? It is certainly wrong in England. Moreover it creates ambiguities with 'Mold' (which is a town).
If 'Mold' is the only US spelling then I agree we have a problem - but otherwise can it please be moved to "Mould" as I want to be able to recommend Wikipedia to students
(Are there other Wikipedia items which have similar properties?)
Aa42john (talk) 18:01, 1 December 2010 (UTC)::::Reply
Does mo(u)ld have any natural predators? 160.39.56.119 (talk) 00:57, 29 December 2010 (UTC)Reply
With so many different kinds of mold, shouldn't the line: 'Mold has a musty odor.' be 'Most common molds have a musty odor.)? It seems improbable that every mold has a musty odor, but maybe they do! Zipzip50 (talk) 01:27, 29 July 2011 (UTC)Reply
I am removing the gallery of photographs of various different items covered in moulds. The reason for the removal is that Wikipedia is not a repository for images (try Wikimedia Commons for that) and galleries are generally [[ not considered to be a useful addition to a WP page.Jimjamjak (talk) 08:01, 27 October 2011 (UTC)Reply
i think that mould is not that toxic .. you konow we eat it on cheeze right — Preceding unsigned comment added by 208.80.102.59 (talk) 19:45, 1 May 2012 (UTC)Reply
I've changed this article's importance level to reflect the fact that mold is one of the significant fungi-related topics. If there are any questions about this, feel free to ask. --Sbluen (talk) 01:27, 7 January 2013 (UTC)Reply
In Canada it should be "mould", not "mold", so I made the change to the beginning to the article. Any government of Canada article you see online uses the spelling "mould" so I think it is fair enough that it should be stated that mould is the spelling for UK, NZ, AU, and CA. That, and growing up, it was always "mould." — Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.215.87.30 (talk) 05:07, 13 April 2014 (UTC)Reply
I would go further and say that, since it seems only the US spells mold as 'mold', the article should be entitled 'mould' otherwise it runs the risk of appearing US focused and not globally focused. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2001:67c:10ec:52ca:8000::997 (talk • contribs)
The current definition is very imprecise and only describes what a lay-person might observe when seeing food beginning to decay. The presence of Hyphae, for example, is a characteristic of all fungi. Whilst this may not be of critical importance here - we can after all have articles about every-day things - it becomes more significant when the term is used elsewhere as in Medicinal molds. In the latter case, this generates a very substantial and very unclear overlap with Medicinal mushrooms. This is a mess that urgently needs resolution. What would be a good start is a clear statement identifying which Phyla are considered to encompass the Molds from which it would be possible to identify all the rest. These won't of course be "Mushrooms" (again a non-taxonomic term) because there will be many ascomycetes and a whole range of fungi not producing classical mushroom or toadstool spore bodies. I haven't the mycological knowledge or skill to sort these out, but I hope that there is an editor out there who can point this article in the right direction. Velella Velella Talk 20:18, 16 August 2014 (UTC)Reply
I added what I thought is a good section to the mold article. It was about the use of mold in art. Here is the text of what I added, except I didn't place the "Citation needed" notes: "Various artists have used molds in artistic fashion. Daniele Del Nero creates creepy, decaying architectural models of houses that are mold-covered. Antoine Bridier-Nahmias deliberately grows molds in Petri dishes that grows symmetrically and with somewhat attractive colors, and places photos on the blog Magical Contamination.[citation needed]" However, another user deleted the section, mentioning lack of notability. It may be that the particular artists I mention are not notable, but it seems that the concept of using mold in art is notable and germane to the article, and that mentioning particular artists fleshes out the concept. What does the community think? Should the section be re-instated?69.230.179.59 (talk) 16:49, 10 May 2015 (UTC)Reply
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The comment(s) below were originally left at Talk:Mold/Comments, and are posted here for posterity. Following several discussions in past years, these subpages are now deprecated. The comments may be irrelevant or outdated; if so, please feel free to remove this section.
There should be a section on the three divisions of mold -- summary of the differences in terms of taxonomy, reproduction, etc. Then the specific information (applications and environments) should be moved to the proper division's article. This should be a page for broad statements about mold and the division's articles should be for the specifics.
A brief section on common/famous molds containing redirects to the famous mold's article could also come in handy(example penicillin). 199.74.90.145 18:35, 21 May 2007 (UTC)Reply |
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I live in Canada, I spell it as mold, and so does everyone else I know. Maybe people also say mould, but it should be put as both. Alex of Canada (talk) 01:30, 14 October 2018 (UTC)Reply
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:Mold (disambiguation) which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. —RMCD bot 20:31, 14 April 2020 (UTC)Reply
These are questions that I was hoping I could find answers to on the wiki:
Is mold a living organism?
What is the lifespan or timeframe for a particular molds' existence?
Where does mold come from; how does it originate?
Is mold mutually exclusive to the molecular/cellular structure it forms on or is it always present in some form or another?
--Ball4376 (talk) 18:17, 15 April 2020 (UTC)Reply
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:Mold which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. —RMCD bot 21:32, 21 April 2020 (UTC)Reply
There is a move discussion in progress on Talk:Mold (disambiguation) which affects this page. Please participate on that page and not in this talk page section. Thank you. —RMCD bot 05:02, 25 April 2020 (UTC)Reply
They do extracellular digestion. 103.80.172.165 (talk) 12:50, 14 December 2021 (UTC)Reply