Analysis: is it sci-fi hysteria or do fungal spores present a real danger? Let's investigate the world's potential ticking time bomb
By David O'Connor and Jerry Clancy, DCU
As global temperatures continue to rise with our changing climate, we won’t just get hot under the collar, the allergenic and pathogenic fungal season is also set to lengthen and intensify. Bad news for those with allergies or asthma as this problem is set to become more of a concern as time proceeds. Thankfully in Ireland, with projects like "FONTANA", every year we understand more about fungal spores and the damage they can cause. If we understand the problem, we can solve it.
Fungal spores might be at the forefront of your mind these days due to the smash hit post-apocalyptic HBO drama (and video game series) "The Last of Us", which portrays a world where a fungal pandemic has spread rapidly across the globe. While there are some similarities between the show and our real-life pandemic, there is one major difference: this time the fungus is to blame. Many people watching may have wondered whether this was even possible. Could that case of athlete’s foot really turn you into a ravenous monster, or is this all just more sci-fi hysteria? Let’s investigate the world’s potential ticking time bomb.
We know fungal spores can harm the outside of our skin and feet, but spores can also cause damage if they get into our bodies. For every Malaria death, there are four people who die from fungal infections. This is in part due to the fact that we don’t know as much about them as we’d like; there are more than 3.8 million different species of fungi, but so far, over 90% are still completely unknown, and lots of the ones we do know, aren’t so friendly.
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From RTÉ 2FM's Dave Fanning, University of Birmingham Associate Professor Rebecca Drummond explains the fungus from The Last of US and whether it could become a reality
Fungal spores have so many ways to get into your system. You’re probably breathing them in as you read this (fungal spores are everywhere). Many insects, birds, mammals, and other animals can contract fungal infections and spread them. The Cordyceps fungus (the fungus in "The Last of Us") is real, it infects the bodies of ants and crickets, taking full control of their muscles and limbs.
While it appears that the fungus controls their brain and mind, the reality is much scarier. The Cordyceps carefully weaves its way between all the muscle fibres and ligaments of the body, and controls them like a puppet, without even entering the brain. Just imagine having no control of your body, watching your arms and legs walk along in a zombie-like state, completely awake, not even able to scream or look away. Sometimes truth really is stranger and more horrifying than fiction.
In "The Last of Us", the Cordyceps fungus infects us via contaminated corn crops. There are real-life examples of this happening with other species. Throughout history, the ergot fungi have been infecting rye and barley and wreaking havoc on those who ate infected breads and cereals. If you accidentally ate the wrong sandwich, you could expect to suffer from convulsions, muscle contractions, psychosis, and manic episodes. This is not unlike what happens at the beginning of infection in the TV-show. There’s a theory that an ergot fungus infection in the town of Salem is what led to accusations of "witchcraft", and subsequent executions during the Salem Witch Trials. One recent example from 1950’s France led to 50 people being interned in asylums after consuming "cursed bread".
From National Geographic, 'zombie' parasite Cordyceps fungus takes over insects through mind control
Now we could spend all day hypothesising over the conditions that could cause the fantasy that "The Last of Us" portrays, or we could acknowledge the reality of fungal spores. The truth is, even common fungal spores can have significant health effects on the public, and these spores are present throughout most of the year.
The World Health Organisation agrees. Last year they released a list of "Critical Priority" fungal pathogens for the first time ever. The list is not for the faint of heart, with many recently discovered dangers evaluated. These fungal pathogens include Aspergillus Fumigatus, a fungus that can live in your garden compost bin. Recently it has grown resistant to known treatments, so potentially if you are infected by its spores (usually through inhalation), some studies say chances of death are between 88 and 100%.
Thankfully, technology is continuing to rapidly advance, and the traditional, time-consuming, microscope analysis and detection, seen in Episode 2 of the "The Last of US" series, is being steadily replaced by real-time, automatic monitoring. The Irish EPA funded FONTANA project has looked to incorporate such real-time devices into a preliminary network, to provide data on the fluorescence, size, and shape of individual airborne particles. This information can then be combined with weather and pollution data, to construct Artificial Intelligence (AI) or machine learning forecast models. This way we can accurately identify the concentrations and composition of fungal spores in the air. Soon, a fungal forecast may accompany the weather forecast.
So, are we doing all we can? Fungal monitoring has been in place across much of the world since the 1970’s, but not in Ireland. There hasn’t been a bioaerosol network (pollen, fungal spore, bacteria etc) to provide data or forecasts for those at risk from fungal pathogens. Nevertheless, projects like "FONTANA" undertaken by researchers in DCU have completed plenty of work and research on ways to monitor and mitigate these bioaerosol.
The project has now finished, leaving Ireland again in the unenviable position of having no bioaerosol-monitoring network. This is important as Ireland has the fourth highest asthma rate in the world. Thus, fungal spores present an even more serious risk to the Irish public than most other countries, as fungal spores can trigger and exacerbate asthma attacks, increasing their frequency and severity. And those compost-dwelling spores mentioned earlier? Yeah, we have those here too.
As we look into the future, near and far, most of our researchers’ attention is on what’s certain to happen. That’s focused on the fact that every year, more Irish people develop allergies and sensitivities to fungal spores, and more fungal spores are growing as the climate changes. We need to be monitoring, modelling, and predicting these changes to keep the population informed and safe. We don’t know if fungal spores will cause another major global epidemic, famine, or pandemic, but what we do know is they definitely can. Hopefully, this article will show you that it shouldn’t be the "Last of Us" or "The Last of The Conversation" on why Ireland needs a bioaerosol monitoring network.
Dr David O'Connor is an assistant professor at the School of Chemical Sciences at DCU. Jerry Clancy is a PhD student in the School of Chemical Sciences at DCU.
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
