Cunninghamella elegans is a species of fungus in the genus Cunninghamella found in soil. It can be grown in Sabouraud dextrose broth, a liquid medium used for cultivation of yeasts and molds from liquid which are normally sterile. As opposed to C. bertholletiae, it is not a human pathogen, with the exception of two documented patients. Description Cunninghamella elegans is a filamentous fungus that produces purely gray colonies. Electron microscopy studies show that the conidia are covered with spines. Use as a fungal organism capable of xenobiotics metabolism Cunninghamella elegans is able to degrade xenobiotics. It has a variety of enzymes of phases I (modification enzymes acting to introduce reactive and polar groups into their substrates) and II (conjugation enzymes) of the xenobiotic metabolism, as do mammals. Cytochrome P450 monooxygenase, aryl sulfotransferase, glutathione S-transferase, UDP-glucuronosyltransferase, UDP-glucosyltransferase activities have been detected in cytosolic or microsomal fractions. Cytochrome P-450 and cytochrome P-450 reductase in C. elegans are part of the phase I enzymes. They are induced by the corticosteroid cortexolone and by phenanthrene. C. elegans also possesses a lanosterol 14-alpha demethylase, another enzyme in the cytochrome P450 family. Cunninghamella elegans also possesses a glutathione S-transferase. Use as a fungal model organism of mammalian drug metabolism Cunninghamella elegans is a microbial model of mammalian drug metabolism. The use of this fungus could reduce the over-all need for laboratory animals. Cunninghamella elegans is able to transform the tricyclic antidepressants amitriptyline and doxepin, the tetracyclic antidepressant mirtazapine, the muscle relaxant cyclobenzaprine, the typical antipsychotic chlorpromazine as well as the antihistamine and anticholinergic methdilazine and azatadine. It is also able to transform the antihistamines brompheniramine, chlorpheniramine and pheniramine. It forms a glucoside with the diuretic furosemide. The transformation of oral contraceptive mestranol by C. elegans yields two hydroxylated metabolites, 6beta-hydroxymestranol and 6beta,12beta-dihydroxymestranol. Metabolism of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons The phase I cytochrome P450 enzyme systems of C. elegans has been implicated in the neutralization of numerous polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). It can degrade molecules such as anthracene, 7-methylbenz[a]anthracene and 7-hydroxymethylbenz[a]anthracene, phenanthrene, acenaphthene, 1- and 2-methylnaphthalene, naphthalene, fluorene or benzo(a)pyrene. In the case of phenanthrene, C. elegans produces a glucoside conjugate of 1-hydroxyphenanthrene (phenanthrene 1-O-beta-glucose). Metabolism of pesticides Cunninghamella elegans is also able to degrade the herbicides alachlor, metolachlor and isoproturon as well as the fungicide mepanipyrim. Metabolism of phenolics Cunninghamella elegans can be used to study the metabolism of phenols. This type of molecules already have reactive