Researchers revealed this Thursday that a deadly fungus that is usually found only in the tropics is making its way to the Pacific Coast of British Columbia and south into Washington, Oregon and Idaho.
At present the researchers are not too worried about the status of the fungus but are keeping a close watch on it with the anticipation that its spread may quicken once it reaches warmer waters.
The spread is also to be taken seriously because the strain that had moved into the US in 2004 has mutated and become a more deadly strain than the original which had invaded B.C. in 1999. Of the 21 people who contracted the fungus, 5 have reportedly died. This is 25% fatality and Canada reported 8.7% mortality among the 218 infected people. 4 human cases and 4 animal cases have been reported in California according to Dr. Ben Sun, the state public health veterinarian.
The fungus is called Cryptococcus gattii and primarily resided in the tropical and subtropical areas. This fungus resembles Cryptococcus neoformans that kills nearly 600,000 people around the world each year. C. gattii infects healthy people while C. neoformans affects the immunocompromised like HIV positive patients mainly. The fungus does not spread from person to person or via insects. It spreads as spores that are blown in the air. These spores when inhaled form colonies in the lungs and can spread to the whole body. The patient may develop chest pain, breathlessness, prolonged coughing, pneumonia and weight loss, headache, meningitis etc. The patient may need to be admitted and given intravenous antifungal drugs like Amphotericin B for up to 6-8 weeks.
Molecular biologist Edmond J. Byrnes III of Duke University Medical Center who is the lead author of the report appearing in the online journal PLoS Pathogens said, “Overall, I don't think it is a large threat at this time…But the fact that it is continuing to spread geographically and the number of cases is rising makes it a concern.” “This novel fungus is worrisome because it appears to be a threat to otherwise healthy people,” he added. Mycologist Karen Bartlett of the University of British Columbia, who was not a part of this report said, “This is really big news in the world of people who study [fungi]… It's of clinical health importance because of the fact that the diagnosis can potentially be missed by physicians and veterinarians.” Epidemiologist Julie Harris of the mycotic diseases branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also said, “We need physicians to be aware of this and think about it when they see symptoms of infection…This is a serious infection, but so far it's a rare infection.”
The experts still emphasize that people should not panic unduly. Philip Alcabes, Ph.D., an infectious diseases epidemiologist at Hunter College, in New York City says that these genetic mutations are common and are “a pretty normal, expectable evolutionary event in nature that has a slight amount of human fallout.” He said that over time the virulence of the fungus is bound to decrease if it follows normal patterns. He also said, “There are no real precautions you can take, because it's hard to tell which areas would be more infected or where levels of C. gattii could be higher.” Extreme cold can kill this fungus, warming of climates may be a reason aiding the spread believe researchers.