A new existential crisis is here, thanks to HBOs new streaming series, The Last of Us. Even Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk cant keep their eyes off of the thrillerbased off of a video gamewhich follows the spread of a fungus that seeps into the communitys brains and bodies and ultimately turns them into zombies.
As dystopian as The Last of us seems, people have been curious if a so-called fungus pandemic can happen in real life. One scientist at the beginning of the show foreshadows the terror about to ensue saying, There are some fungi that seek not to kill but to control.
The fungus in the show, cordyceps, is real but is not a human fungal pathogen, Dr. David Perlin, editor of The Journal of Fungi and the head of Hackensack Meridian Center for Discovery & Innovation, tells Fortune. This means it cannot survive in humans in a way that harms the brain and body, but instead infects insects like ants.
Fungi are everywhere, although only a small subset of genus and species cause human disease, he says.
Its because cordyceps cannot survive at human body temperatures. We do understand that a changing environment creates new niche opportunities for emerging microbes, Perlin says. The pragmatist in me says this could never happen, but the realist in me says to be open to possibilities, Perlin says, referring to whether cordyceps could adapt to infect humans and lead to a pandemic emergency like the show depicts.
Ive been around too many microorganisms, bacteria, fungi, [and] viruses that adapt to situations, Perlin says.
The show examines the role of climate change in giving fungi the ability to adapt to new temperatures.
With global warming, there is the potential for many more species that can adapt and thrive at much higher temps, Perlin says. Hence, they may be more likely to infect humans and may even thrive with an elevated temp due to post-infection fever.
Is a fungal pandemic possible?
While cordyceps specifically isnt the most likely scenario, Perlin says the situation with fungal infections worldwide remains dire (although not to the extent of a zombie takeover). Fungal infections have been on the rise, killing about 1.3 million people each year. Only about 100 fungi are known to cause human disease, Perlin says, with about a handful causing major human disease. In October, the World Health Organization (WHO) outlined a ranking of fungal pathogens that can affect humans, with some pathogens labeled as high priority.
When a human does come in contact with a fungus that has the ability to affect their functioning, it can travel to the lungs and brains causing inflammation and neurodegeneration, Perlin says.
We see this with cryptococcal meningitis which can completely alter the personality of a person in late-stage disease, he says, noting that immunocompromised populations are at higher risk for these types of complications. They are largely unresponsive and lose memory recall, judgment and an ability to speak coherently.
They can become scarily unrecognizable and zombie-like he adds.
Human-to-human transmission, though, isnt the fundamental way fungal infections spread, in a way that would lead to a massive outbreak, but again, Perlin says never say never on fungis ability to adapt.
While the show remains unrealistic in its details, it draws attention to the importance of taking fungal infection seriously, Perlin says, adding a need for prioritization on diagnostics and therapy to catch and treat fungal infections. And in any case, if the show can shed light on the reality of fungal infections, thats enough.
Currently, we have underinvested in next generation molecular diagnostics to rapidly identify disease and new drug development that addresses invasive fungal pathogens at all stages of disease, he says. A comprehensive vaccine effort would be nice too.
Learn how to navigate and strengthen trust in your business with The Trust Factor, a weekly newsletter examining what leaders need to succeed. Sign up here.
