Demise of botany in the medical curriculum

The diverse plant life on Earth—consisting of nearly 400,000 species—can be divided into three broad categories based on biological characteristics: nonvascular, seedless vascular, and seed plants.

Basidiomycota is a diverse phylum of fungi that includes ecologically significant decomposers such as white rot fungi, symbionts like mycorrhizal fungi, plant pathogens such as rusts and smuts, and edible species like Agaricus bisporus (the common button mushroom). These fungi play crucial roles in nutrient cycling, symbiotic relationships, and even human health. Their defining feature is the basidium, a microscopic club-shaped structure responsible for producing basidiospores.Fruiting Bodies...

The primary organs of vascular plants are roots, stems, and leaves, but these structures can be highly variable, adapted for the specific needs and environment of different plant species.

Plants have a life cycle split between two multicellular stages: a haploid stage—with cells containing one set of chromosomes—and a diploid stage—with cells containing two sets of chromosomes. The haploid stage is the gamete-producing gametophyte, and the diploid stage is the spore-producing sporophyte.

From Water to Land

Seedless Vascular Plants Were the First Tall Plants on Earth