Are fungi able to control humans?

You are probably already familiar with the existence of fungi. There are millions of fungal species in the world, but what most people do not know is that some of these species can form a threat to humans. Lucky for us, evolution has given us the chance to develop an immune system that can protect us against most fungal species. However, some fungal species can infect other animals such as insects, and take control of their mind and body.  

To give an example, the fungal species Ophiocordyceps can control ants. The infected ant starts showing abnormal behavior as the fungus grows fungal cells around the ant’s brain that allows the fungus to control the ant’s nervous system. The fungus then emerges from the ant’s head so it can release new spores into the air. Every ant that is infected with this species, shows the same specific behavior; it climbs high into a tree where it dies so that new spores can be easily spread. We are still not certain how the fungus manages to control the ant. It could be secreting certain chemicals that interact with the proteins related to the nervous system or alter its DNA. 

The question that arose after the movie “The Last of Us” was whether this parasitic fungus could do the same to humans. The Last of Us is a movie in which a fungus that has developed due to climate change takes control over all humans. But not to worry, scientists claim that this event is most unlikely to occur in humans. Fungi cannot withstand warm temperatures such as our body temperature (37^oC) and so, for the fungus to adapt to the human body temperature would require years of evolution. Moreover, the same fungal species cannot simply control the human mind the way it controls the ant’s mind as the physiology of humans and insects is entirely different. 

However, climate change makes it easier for fungi to adapt to warmer temperatures, as the environment temperature is getting higher. So even if fungi are still not able to control our minds and bodies, they can cause more severe fungal infections. It is difficult to treat these infections as animals and fungi are closely related to each other, so when creating an antidote, we need to be careful that we are not killing ourselves as well. We cannot avoid these severe infections since fungal spores are all around us. You have actually inhaled around 300 fungal spores while reading this blog.