news World's first case of a fatal-plant fungus infecting a man revealed

March 30, 2023

Now before y'all have meltdowns in here:

-The man was a mycologist, so he quite literally had a LOT of exposure to spores

-For some reason, they're not revealing the date of this infection. What we know is that the man is fine, and has been disease free for over two years.

-The worrying part (imo) is that this man had no underlying conditions :mazen:

https://news.sky.com/story/killer-plant-fungus-chondrostereum-purpureum-infects-man-in-india-in-world-first-case-12844978

Quote

Spread by airborne spores, it is named such because it gradually turns leaves silver - and is often fatal. It was not known to infect humans, but medics in India have reported what they believe is the first ever case.

The patient was a 61-year-old man who received treatment at Consultant Apollo Multispecialty Hospitals in Kolkata, having experienced symptoms including a cough, fatigue, difficulty swallowing and a hoarse voice for three months.

Unlike people deemed most at risk of fungal infections known to jump species, such as those with cancer, HIV, respiratory diseases, and organ transplants, the man had no history of any illnesses.
...
Scans taken at the hospital revealed the infection had caused a paratracheal abscess in the man's neck, partially obstructing his airway. Medics drained the pus and the man was prescribed daily antifungal medicine for two months.
...
But writing in the journal Medical Mycology Case Reports, the medics who treated him said the man's surprising case "raises serious questions" regarding the ability of plant pathogens to cause disease in healthy humans and animals.

"If the fungi can escape the phagocytosis pathway and are able to evade the host immune system, then they can establish themselves as human pathogens," they said.