United States: Fungi have been becoming a worrisome threat to human health, and experts have highlighted that fungus-related infections are difficult to treat as compared to bacterial infections.
Fungi and its invasion!
Fungi seldom induce illness in humans, typically limiting their impact to minor diseases such as athlete’s foot or vaginal yeast infections. Most fungi thrive in environments with moderate temperatures, specifically within a range of 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit—considerably below the approximate 98 degrees of our internal body temperature, according to Arturo Casadevall, a molecular microbiologist at Johns Hopkins University who specializes in fungal infections, according to gizmodo.com.
Although some fungi naturally reside within us, their numbers are significantly fewer compared to our bacterial inhabitants, and harmful fungal infections rarely establish themselves.
Casadevall, along with numerous other scientists, was motivated to delve into these infections following the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Before the development of antiretroviral therapy, HIV infections routinely decimated immune systems, leading to outbreaks of fungal diseases that were previously almost unheard of.
Fortunately, with timely treatment, these AIDS-related fungal infections have become rare in places like the US. However, humanity is becoming a more attractive host for fungi today for different reasons. Modern medical advancements have enabled us to extend lives with organ transplants and treat once-incurable cancers. However, these advances often necessitate the use of medications that suppress the immune system, albeit temporarily. This suppression can create just enough of an opportunity for some fungi to cause a serious infection, according to reports by gizmodo.com.
And because fungal infections are more likely to occur in individuals with compromised immune systems, they inherently present a more formidable challenge for doctors than a routine ear infection or a case of strep throat caused by bacteria.
“When bacteria infiltrate the body, they can cause disease even in small numbers. In contrast, fungi tend to kill slowly, allowing them to multiply extensively before treatment even begins. This results in a higher number of fungal organisms present,” Casadevall told Gizmodo. “Moreover, antifungals are less effective than antibiotics, as these drugs rely on the immune system’s cooperation. However, in many of these cases, the immune system isn’t functioning properly. Therefore, you have multiple issues occurring simultaneously, which is why, when you hear about someone having an invasive fungal infection, it often means it has been ongoing for a considerable time,” the reports by gizmodo.com mentioned.
Fungi are also more difficult to combat once they become problematic because we simply have fewer tools available to counter them. There are four major classes of antifungals, with only ten drugs approved by the FDA to treat systemic fungal infections, compared to the eight major classes and hundreds of antibiotics available for bacterial infections. One reason for the scarcity of antifungals is our relative similarity to fungi.
“Fungi are eukaryotic organisms, like us, whereas bacteria are prokaryotic. This is why it can be challenging to find drugs that can harm them without being too toxic to us,” Mahmoud Ghannoum, professor of dermatology at Case Western Reserve University, told Gizmodo.
Adapt or Die: Experts
Regrettably, much like bacteria, fungi are evolving resistance to the limited drugs we have against them. Ghannoum and other researchers have documented the emergence of ringworm fungi that are beginning to resist frontline antifungals, including strains that are spreading sexually. Other fungi are becoming more heat-tolerant, partly due to climate change. The concern is that some of these heat-adapted fungi will start infecting people more frequently—a fear that may have already materialized with the emergence of Candida auris, according to gizmodo.com.
C. auris, first discovered in 2009, is now considered one of the most serious and worsening infectious disease threats. The fungus can routinely resist multiple antifungals and spreads rapidly in vulnerable locations such as hospitals and nursing care facilities. Casadevall and other scientists have found evidence that C. auris is the first—but perhaps not the last—fungal infection to emerge due to climate change.
Climate change can also alter environmental conditions, expanding the range and survivability of certain fungi. Some research suggests this has already occurred with the fungi responsible for Valley fever, which has historically been confined to the Southwestern US but is now appearing in other states.
As alarming as fungi are now and may become in the future, humanity is undoubtedly working to adapt in response.