Fungi are becoming more adapted to hot temperatures, and that may lead to more human infections, Elizabeth Tracey reports

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The summer of 2024 is shaping up to be among the hottest on record, and for fungi, that may be just the stimulus needed to enable them to effectively infect humans. That’s according to Johns Hopkins professor Arturo Casadevall in his new book, “Will the Fungi Win?”

Casadevall: Most humans don't worry about the fungi except when we get athletes foot or the nail fungus and the reason for that is we have tremendous protection because we are hot. Our temperature can keep out most of the fungi. Between our temperature and immunity imagine two pillars keeping out the fungal world from our bodies but the big concern is you're 37° and currently you're keeping out about 95% of fungal species but it's going to be really hot out today and the fungi are adapting to temperature.  :30

Casadevall notes that for the most part, people who experience fungal infections have a compromised immune response that allows the organism to gain the upper hand, but as they adapt to higher temperatures that is likely to change. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.