In a world where people are preparing to leave Earth and explore the universe, you’d expect that we’ve already solved the threats on our own planet. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. A recent study reveals a growing danger that’s been overlooked for decades: fungi. These organisms might seem harmless, but they’re becoming a serious threat to human health. Curious to find out why scientists are raising alarms? Keep reading to discover everything about it.
No vaccines against fungal infections
While it is not uncommon for fungi to cause dangerous conditions for humans, there is not much you can do to fight once you have an infection. However, a recent study shows that there are few options for medicine to battle fungal infections or diseases. And even though there are only a few limited treatment options available, no one is making significant progress in developing new antifungal drugs and vaccines.
When companies have funding for these types of projects, it is often not enough to keep it going. This is a real problem since Fungal infections are becoming a growing threat. Unlike bacterial infections, which have a wide array of antibiotics, antifungal options are scarce due to the biological similarities between fungi and human cells, making it challenging to target fungi without harming human tissues.
Will Fungi actually take over the world?
Now, you might think that situations like those in “The Last of Us” can become a reality. Or maybe you think that a zombie parasite or fungi will start taking control of people. However, this is not likely to happen… yet. But that doesn’t mean we can just ignore the problem until it is too big. For example, due to climate changes, more than 9 million Europeans could be threatened by a deadly fungus by the year 2100. When this happens, we must have enough medication or treatment options to protect us against it.
