Experts Warn About Zombie Fungus: 'The Last of Us' Could Happen in Real Life

23.02.2023 - 16:41

The Last of Us is a widely acclaimed television series that has gained immense popularity for its unique premise of a 'mind-controlling' fungus that turns people into zombies. The show presents a scenario where the fungus infects humans, causing them to turn into aggressive and violent creatures. While the concept is fictional, it has sparked discussions about the real-world threats posed by infectious diseases and the possibility of global pandemics. Here are the details...👇

Experts say that the story of The Last of Us, which is about a zombie attack, may become reality.

The story, which first gained popularity as a video game, was later turned into a series.

In the story, the parasitic fungus "cordyceps" takes over people's minds and turns them into zombies.

The main story is based on a documentary about the cordyceps fungus taking over the ants' brains, controlling their minds to destroy colonies.

Molecular Microbiologist Dr. Mark Ramsdale said: "Some of them could potentially switch from one lifestyle to another and become pathogenic in a context we hadn't thought of before."

Currently, the cordyceps fungus has not evolved to cope with the normal internal temperature of the human body, 37°C, but Professor Elaine Bignell, a fungal pathogen expert, has warned about other harmful fungi.

"A number of fungal species are quite obvious pathogens and kill hundreds of thousands of people every year, it's just that the public is not aware of it."

A World Health Organization report has warned that fungal infections have "increased significantly" among patients in the hospital during the Covid-19 pandemic.

One of the fungi considered to pose the most significant risk is "Aspergillus fumigatus", a common mold found in many homes, which can cause "chronic and acute lung disease" and can be fatal.

Another potentially dangerous fungus mentioned by the World Health Organization report is the fungus "Candida auris".

The highly drug-resistant fungus, which has caused a number of outbreaks in hospitals around the world, can cause life-threatening infections in people with weakened immunity.

The cordyceps fungus was not on the World Health Organization's list of fungi that threaten humans, but over time, this fungus can also mutate.

Experts said that although the cordyceps fungus has not developed the ability to live in higher temperatures, many other fungi have it.

"One of the things that killer mushrooms have in common is that they can grow at human body temperature, and this is actually unusual for a mushroom. Most fungi in the environment are suitable for growing in more temperate conditions, putting quite a lot of pressure on any microorganism to counteract an immune response in the human body and cope with high temperature."