Fungal infections are a lot harder to treat that those because of bacteria.
Thankfully, with timely treatment, these AIDS-related fungal infections are now a rarity in places like the U.S.
But people in general arebecoming a more appealing host for fungi these days, for other reasons.
An illustration of Candida auris fungi© Kateryna Kon/Science Photo Library via Getty
Modern medical advances have allowed us to extend lives with donated organs and to treat once incurable cancers.
But these advances often require the use of medications that suppress the immune system, at least temporarily.
That weakening can provide just enough of an opening for some fungi to cause a serious infection.
When bacteria get into the body, they can cause disease even in small numbers.
So one problem is that you have a lot more fungal organisms around, Casadevall told Gizmodo.
But often in these cases, the immune system isnt working.
One reason why we have less antifungals around is because of our relatively close similarity to fungi.
Other fungi are becoming more heat-tolerant, in no small part thanks to climate change.
Casadevall and other scientists have found evidence thatC.
aurisis thefirstbut perhaps not the lastfungal infectionto have emerged from climate change.
Climate change can also shift environmental conditions to expand the range and survivability of certain fungi.
But there is hope on the horizon.
Both Casadevall and Ghannoum note that researchers are working on developingnew antifungals and vaccinesto the most worrying fungal pathogens.
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