Thamnidium

Thamnidium is a genus of fungi belonging to the family Mucoraceae.^[1]

Thamnidium
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Fungi
Division:	Mucoromycota
Class:	Mucoromycetes
Order:	Mucorales
Family:	Mucoraceae
Genus:	Thamnidium Link (1809)
Species
Thamnidium anomalum Thamnidium ctenidium Thamnidium elegans

The genus was circumscribed in 1809 by Johann Heinrich Friedrich Link.^[1]

Thamnidium molds are key participants in the aging process for dry aged beef, producing protease and collagenase enzymes that naturally tenderize the meat.^[2] Thamnidium forms pale grey patches of mold called 'whiskers' on fatty areas of a carcass or cut during the aging process.^[3]

The genus has also been implicated in the spoiling of meat in cold storage, alongside other fungal genera such as Acremonium, Mucor and Rhizopus.^[4]