Fungi: Get them before they get you

The World Health Organisation has pinpointed one of the most dangerous threats to humanity. No, it’s not a new virus. However, it’s one of the most abundant and diverse components of the ecosystem.

The new report by WHO introduced the first-ever list of fungal “priority pathogens” – a catalogue of 19 fungi that pose the greatest threat to public health as they are becoming increasingly common and resistant to treatment. Only four classes of antifungal medicines are currently available, and few others are in the clinical pipeline.

Rapid and sensitive diagnostics are lacking for most of these fungal pathogens and those that exist are not widely available or affordable.

According to the WHO report, the invasive forms of these fungal infections often affect patients with underlying immune system-related conditions.

The incidence and geographic range of fungal diseases are expanding worldwide due to global warming and increases in international travel and trade.

Despite the growing concern, fungal infections receive very little attention. Accurate data on fungal disease distribution and antifungal resistance patterns is scarce.

Judging by WHO’s grim predictions, the world will be easy prey to fungi at any time soon.

Even so, some fungi make bread rise and ferment beer and wine and are essential in the production of enzymes and drugs, while other fungi damage crops, timber and food.

Although no one really knows how many species of fungi there are, some scientists estimate their number at between 2.2 million and 3.8 million – and of those species only 120,000 have been documented.

Why ignore fungi, one of the five pillars of biodiversity in the ecosystem? Some fungi play an important role in breaking down dead materials and waste plastic. For example, mushrooms go down well with invertebrates.

For some environmentalists, fungi are the great white hope for the planet as an indispensable part of green economies.

What are we waiting for? If it’s necessary to bring fungi research to the table before it puts us on its menu.