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In 2009, Japanese officials identified the presence of a deadly mushroom called "superbug" called Candida auris in a human patient for the first time. Other infections involving this fungus have begun to appear in hospitals around the world, including the United States in 2016, according to the CDC. The sudden increase in C. auris as a human pathogen was surprising and a new study indicates that climate change may be the cause.
Most fungal species are adapted to life in relatively cool natural environments such as soil and trees. In comparison, humans are generally too hot for fungal infections to occur, making it a rare case and limited to a small percentage of known fungal species.
However, this may change as the planet warms up and mushroom species begin to adapt to warmer temperatures. This is revealed by a study led by Arturo Casadevall, MD, Ph.D., of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who had previously published a 2010 article signaling that climate change could spur the proliferation of other fungal pathogens.
C. aurisThe surprising appearance of the pathogen for man appeared in several "distinct families" of the fungus that existed separately in different parts of the world. This constant change from one continent to another and the apparently sudden ability of the fungus to infect humans indicates that C. auris may be the first fungal species to adapt to a warmer climate and, as a result, to become a threat to human health.
As part of their study, scientists have studied a few dozen species of mushrooms, including C. auris and his closest relatives. The temperature range of these species has been badyzed and found to be higher for the new C. auris pathogen having an impact on humans compared to other species. It is not known how this mushroom species develops resistance to conventional treatments and antifungal medications.
According to current estimates, between 30 and 60% of people infected with the virus C. auris have died as a result.
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