Distinct mycelial network architectures during early development of Trichoderma atroviride and Neurospora crassa.

N. crassa develops faster, more hierarchical, and spatially anisotropic mycelial networks compared to T. atroviride during early growth.

• Why it matters: Understanding how filamentous fungi establish their network structures is crucial for insights into their foraging and resource transport, yet little is known about early development stages.
• What they did: The study used label-free microscopy, automated image processing, and graph theory to analyze early mycelial network formation in T. atroviride and N. crassa, focusing on metrics like tips, branches, and network organization.
• The result: N. crassa exhibited faster expansion and hierarchical, anisotropic networks, while T. atroviride formed more isotropic, decentralized networks, both converging to similar fractal dimensions, indicating comparable space-filling properties.