Climate Change: Rising Fungal Threats and Thermo-Adaptation

Climate change is driving a concerning adaptation in fungi that threatens the natural protection mammals have enjoyed for millions of years. Historically, warm mammalian body temperatures (36-37°C) have served as a thermal barrier against fungal infections, limiting human fungal pathogens to just a few hundred species out of millions. Recent research, however, shows fungi are rapidly adapting to tolerate higher temperatures as global temperatures rise. Studies demonstrate that fungi like Cryptococcus can adapt to survive at human body temperature in just 800 generations through genetic changes affecting membrane fluidity and heat shock protein expression. The emergence of Candida auris—a multidrug-resistant pathogen that appeared simultaneously on three continents in 2009—exemplifies this threat, with mortality rates between 30-60% in hospital outbreaks. This thermal adaptation phenomenon extends beyond human health to threaten agriculture and ecosystem stability, representing one of climate change's most overlooked yet potentially devastating consequences as our thermal protection against the fungal kingdom gradually erodes.

https://www.ihadnoclue.com/article/1110728100060266497