Can the Cordyceps fungus evolve to infect humans?

And now that you’re dead, the Cordyceps fungus can continue to spread, turning you into what’s known as a fruiting body. Cordyceps can’t infect humans, as our bodies are better than insects at attacking pathogens. So you can rest easy, knowing you won’t turn into a zombie from these things.

What can Cordyceps fungus infect?

Cordyceps fungi excel at infecting and killing insects. One particular species, Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, has become famous for its ability to turn ants into zombies. It grows through an ant’s body, creating a network of filaments that commandeers the insect’s muscles.

Can a fungus take over a human body?

In humans, fungal infections occur when an invading fungus takes over an area of the body and is too much for the immune system to handle. Fungi can live in the air, soil, water, and plants. There are also some fungi that live naturally in the human body. Like many microbes, there are helpful fungi and harmful fungi.

Is the Cordyceps brain infection real?

That’s because it is: Cordyceps Brain Infection (CBI) has overtaken the planet in The Last of Us (and The Last of Us Part 2). But the fungus that inspired the game really exists — and it’s just as gnarly in real life. In real life, Cordyceps is a genus of fungus that contains hundreds of species.

Can Cordyceps infect vertebrates?

No Cordyceps infects any mammal, or vertebrate for that matter. Luckily for us, these species are specialists. Much of the time, through evolutionary processes, a parasite becomes a specialist, and can’t readily infect other species.

Are all Cordyceps parasitic?

Most Cordyceps species are endoparasitoids, parasitic mainly on insects and other arthropods (they are thus entomopathogenic fungi); a few are parasitic on other fungi.

Is Cordyceps harmful to humans?

Side Effects and Safety No studies have yet examined the safety of Cordyceps in humans. However, a long history of use in Traditional Chinese Medicine suggests they are nontoxic. In fact, the Chinese government approved Cordyceps CS-4 for use in hospitals and recognizes it as a safe, natural drug ( 32 ).

Can humans eat Cordyceps?

No studies have yet examined the safety of Cordyceps in humans. However, a long history of use in Traditional Chinese Medicine suggests they are nontoxic. In fact, the Chinese government approved Cordyceps CS-4 for use in hospitals and recognizes it as a safe, natural drug ( 32 ).

Can Cordyceps evolve?

“People get fungal diseases all the time,” explains Hughes, when asked about the possibility of a cordyceps-induced apocalypse. The cordyceps being able to confuse and sedate insects is one thing, but there’s no way its genus could ever evolve to a point that it could actually manipulate human beings…

What was the virus in last of us?

In part one, “The Last of Us,” the fictional “Cordyceps Brain Infection” virus has turned most of humanity into mindless zombies. At the end of the game, a smuggler named Joel brings Ellie, a 14-year-old orphan with unusual immunity to the virus, to meet a rebel militia known as the Fireflies.

What causes Cordyceps?

Deep in the Amazon rainforest, parasitic fungi called take over ants’ bodies in order to reproduce. Several days after the ant has died, the fungus sends a fruiting body out through the base of the ant’s head, turning its shriveled corpse into a launchpad from which it can jettison its spores and infect new ants.