Major health warning as ‘killer fungus' heads towards Ireland as global temperatures continue to rise
Aspergillus, a mould that can cause respiratory and lung issues if it infects a person, may infect millions of people each year if it spreads to more northern nations in
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Aspergillus may spread to more northerly nations in Europe as global temperatures soar
Credit: Getty Images - Getty
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Research reveals that fungal infections will be a factor in millions of deaths across the globe each year.
Credit: Getty Images - Getty
The growth of fungal pathogens, which can flourish in a wide range of settings, including homes, is approaching a tipping point, according to Norman van Rhijn, a Wellcome Trust research fellow at Manchester University who co-authored the study.
He stated that fungal
Aspergillosis, also known as a
The disease is difficult to diagnose due to its hard-to-detect spores, meaning there's a shortage of treatments for the diseases they trigger, and they are growing resistance to existing
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Speaking to the Financial Times, Van Rhijn said: "We're talking about hundreds of thousands of lives, and continental shifts in species distributions.
"In 50 years, where things grow and what you get infected by is going to be completely different."
Despite being a dangerous fungal mould, it can have positive benefits as it is used in industrial and
It was revealed that inhaling its spores does not make everyone ill, but it can be particularly threatening to those with conditions such as asthma, cystic fibrosis or an immune-compromised system.
Most read in Health
In the latest research, it was revealed by the Financial Times that Aspergillus fumigatus could spread across an additional 77 per cent of the territory by the year 2100 due to the world's heavy use of fossil fuels.
This means that it could potentially expose nine million people in Europe to infection.
Mother speaks after her baby is seventh to die from Aspergillus mould infection at Seattle Children's Hospital
The species flourishes in the 37C internal temperature of the human body, which can be explained by its ability to develop swiftly in high temperatures in compost.
'SERIOUS THREAT' TO HUMANS
It was named as one of four critical fungal pathogens that posed the highest risk by the
Professor Elaine Bignell, co-director at the MRC Centre for Medical Mycology at Exeter University, said: "Its lifestyle in the natural environment may have provided Aspergillus fumigatus with the fitness advantage needed to colonise human lungs."
Another species, Aspergillus flavus, lives on crops and could spread to an added 16 per cent of territory in north
Some existing areas in
Darius Armstrong-James, professor of infectious diseases and medical mycology at Imperial College London, told the Financial Times: "There are serious threats from this organism both in terms of human health and food security."
It was also discovered that the disease produces damaging chemicals called aflatoxins that can cause
Higher temperatures and CO2 levels can boost the toxin's production and contaminate its crop hosts, scientists have found.
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