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Climate Change May Have Contributed to Rise of Deadly Fungus, Study Says

Kerry Hensley

   The first fungal disease linked to rising global temperatures may have
   emerged, suggests a study published in the scientific journal[1]mBio.
   Though only [2]715 people in the United States have contracted the new
   fungal infection so far,scientists say it may be an indication of
   what's to come.
   Three unrelated variants of deadlyCandidaauriscropped up simultaneously
   in South America, Asia and Africa, and it [3]has spread to more than 30
   countries in the past decade.
   The fungus, which is difficult to treat, can be life-threatening in
   people with weakened immune systems. The U.S. Centers for Disease
   Control and Prevention (CDC) said C.aurishas been found to be resistant
   to all three of the most common antifungal drugs, and more than a third
   of people afflicted with invasive cases of the fungus die.
   Mild fungal maladies like athlete's foot are common, but severe fungal
   infections are relatively rare in healthy individuals. We are guarded
   from fungal infections by our strong immune systems and high body
   temperatures. Knock down one or both of those protective pillars,
   however, and humans start to look like a good host for opportunistic
   fungi.
   Dr. ArturoCasadevall, a microbiology professor at Johns Hopkins
   University and lead author of the paper, suggested nearly 10 years ago
   that fungi would become more heat-tolerant as Earth becamewarmer,
   causing humans to lose the advantage that our high body temperatures
   provide. He saidC.aurismay be the first example -- and it's unlikely to
   be the last.
   Heat-tolerant fungus
   The researchers compared the heat tolerance ofC.auristo that of similar
   species. While most of the species they considered don't multiply above
   35-37°C (95-98.6°F),C.auriscan survive temperatures of up to 42°C
   (107.6°F).
   That's a problem for people because "we have very little ability [to
   adapt]," saidCasadevall. "We can't raise our temperature and walk
   around with a high fever all the time. But these organisms have the
   capacity to adapt to change, and for them, this change is happening
   gradually, because they can replicate every couple of hours."
   Alone,C.auris'tolerance of high temperatures isn't enough to prove that
   its rise is the product of climate change, since it isn't clear how
   long ago the fungi developed their resistance to high temperatures. The
   researchers acknowledge that climate change is likely just one of many
   factors that led to its emergence.

References

   1. https://mbio.asm.org/content/10/4/e01397-19
   2. https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/candida-auris/index.html
   3. https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/candida-auris/tracking-c-auris.html

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