Latest news with #cordyceps
Gizmodo
7 days ago
- Science
- Gizmodo
Unreal Amber Fossils Show ‘Last of Us' Zombie Fungus Terrorizing Bugs During the Cretaceous
In the video game The Last of Us and its spin-off HBO series, humans fight to survive against cordyceps, a parasitic fungus that turns its hosts into zombies. While the infections are wildly dramatized in both the game and the show, these fungi aren't mere science fiction. In fact, some species have been around since the age of the dinosaurs, a new study suggests. An international team of researchers led by Yuhui Zhuang, a doctoral student of paleontology at China's Yunnan University, recently found two cordyceps-infected insects trapped inside 99-million-year-old amber. The fossilized fly and ant pupa are among the oldest fossil records of animal-pathogenic fungi, dating back to the Cretaceous period. What's more, these insects were infected with two species of fungi previously unknown to science, now named Paleoophiocordyceps gerontoformicae and Paleoophiocordyceps ironomyiae. The researchers published their findings in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B on June 11. 'Overall, these two fossils are very rare, at least among the tens of thousands of amber specimens we've seen, and only a few have preserved the symbiotic relationship between fungi and insects,' Zhuang told CNN. The amber came from northern Myanmar, which has suffered violent conflict since 2017 due to a boom in fossil amber research. The study notes that the specimens the authors used were procured before 2017 and were not, to their knowledge, involved in any conflict. Zhuang and his colleagues used optical microscopes to examine the fossilized insects, then constructed 3D images of them using an X-ray imaging technique called micro-computed tomography. This revealed surprising aspects of the insects' infections. The researchers determined that both of the newly discovered fungal species belong to the genus Ophiocordyceps, which also includes a species commonly known as zombie-ant fungus. The name comes from its ability to control its host's behavior. In the final stage of the infection, the fungus seizes control of the insect's brain and makes it seek a higher location with more sunlight and warmth—optimal conditions for spore production. Once the insect dies, a fungal growth erupts from its head and begins releasing spores that will infect new victims. The fossilized fly was preserved in this state, with the fruiting body of P. ironomyiae bursting from its head. Unlike a typical late-stage Ophiocordyceps infection, which usually produces a fruiting body with a smooth, swollen tip, P. ironomyiae's fruiting body was unexpanded and textured. The ant pupa, infected with P. gerontoformicae, was even more unusual. Instead of emerging from the pupa's head, the fungus erupted out of the metapleural gland, which produces antimicrobial secretions. This has never been observed among any known species of Ophiocordyceps, the researchers note. These differences signaled that they were likely looking at two never-before-seen species. When they compared the structures and growth patterns of these fungi to known Ophiocordyceps species, the researchers found clear traits linking them to this genus but could not match them with any documented species. They used DNA from modern Ophiocordyceps species to build phylogeny—a visual representation of the genus' evolutionary history—then estimated where the newly discovered species diverged from their relatives. The analysis led to a deeper understanding of Ophiocordyceps' history, suggesting that it originated during the early Cretaceous period and started out infecting beetles. It then evolved to infect butterflies, moths, and other insects—including bees and ants—by the end of the mid-Cretaceous. Booming diversity and abundance of insect host species likely drove the rapid emergence of new Ophiocordyceps species during the Cretaceous, the researchers conclude. Piecing together the evolutionary history of parasitic fungi has proved difficult due to a lack of ancient specimens, according to London's Natural History Museum, one of the institutions that contributed to the research. 'It's fascinating to see some of the strangeness of the natural world that we see today was also present at the height of the age of the dinosaurs,' said co-author Edmund Jarzembowski, an associate scientist at the museum, in a statement. The discovery offers a rare glimpse into the rise of these highly adaptable fungal pathogens.
Forbes
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
‘The Last Of Us' Season 2, Episode 5 Recap And Review: It's In The Air
The Last Of Us Credit: HBO 'On him that takes revenge, revenge shall be taken; and by a real evil he shall dearly pay for the goods that are but airy and fantastical. It is like a rolling stone which, when a man hath forced up a hill, will return upon him with a greater violence, and break those bones whose sinews gave it motion.' ~ Jeremy Taylor (1613–1667) 'Revenge is like the sweetest joy . . . .' ~ Tupac Shakur (1971 - 1996) Neil Druckmann, the creator of both The Last Of Us games and co-showrunner of the HBO adaptation, once said that the first game was about love, and the second was about hate. That's a pretty good way to summarize the two games, and the shift in tone from Season 1 of HBO's post-apocalyptic series into Season 2 and beyond. Spoilers ahead. Two really big, really important things happen in tonight's harrowing episode of The Last Of Us. First off, we learn that the cordyceps plague is evolving. Where it once required a bite for someone to become infected with the fungus, now spores carried in the air can infect humans. This is super interesting because in the games, this was always the case. The cordyceps were 'nerfed' for the show, presumably because Pedro Pascal didn't want to wear gas masks all the time, having spent so much time hiding his face for The Mandalorian. Now that Joel is dead, face-hiding is less of an issue. I'm half-joking, of course, but it is curious to me that they've reintroduced air-born plague spread in Season 2. It makes sense. It's a lot more dangerous and terrifying if you can get sick and turn just from breathing in spores. But it's a little odd to make such a drastic change for the first season, only to walk it back in Season 2. Then again, it certainly adds a new layer of threat, and a very dramatic turn as we approach the Season 2 finale. The second big moment comes at the end of the episode, when Ellie (Bella Ramsey) breaks off from Dina (Isabela Merced) and Jesse (Young Mazino) to lead the Scars on a merry chase while they make it back to safety. Dina has been shot in the thigh by an arrow and Ellie has to do something to save her, especially now that she knows she's pregnant. Once she gets away, Ellie heads to the hospital on her own to track down Abby (Kaitlyn Dever). Only, she doesn't find Abby. She finds Nora (Tati Gabrielle) instead. Nora was one of the Wolves who joined Abby in her Joel-killing, and one of the names on Ellie's kill list. Ellie finds her and demands to know where Abby is, but Nora won't give her friend up. At first, she pretends to feel awful about what happened to Joel, but it's just a distraction. She uses her little ruse to get away, though Ellie goes chasing after her, even as other Wolves come to Nora's aid. Nora Credit: HBO The problem Nora runs into is that she rushes down a hall to the elevators – an area that's supposed to be sealed off after the Wolves discover that the basement levels are filled with air-born cordyceps spores. When the other Wolves realize this, they back off, terrified, and leave Nora to her fate. They understandably reason that it's too late for both Nora and her pursuer. Nora thinks that, too, when Ellie finds her. She's in rough shape, coughing, dragging herself along, the sickness already taking hold. When she sees Ellie, she's smug about it, telling her that they're both doomed. Then she realizes that Ellie is the immune girl, the one from Salt Lake. She tells her what Joel did, the people he killed and why, and Ellie just tells her 'I know.' Ellie has a singular purpose here. Where is Abby? When Nora won't tell her, she finds a metal pipe. When Nora still won't tell her, she introduces her to the metal pipe, beating her savagely. I'm really glad that the show didn't shrink from the sheer brutality of this moment, even though the circumstances are different from the game, obviously, since the cordyceps were always an air-born threat there, and here it's presented as a new evolution. This is a major turning point for Ellie. She's not theoretically on a revenge quest now. She's fully locked in, unleashing awful violence against someone who has no way of fighting back. This will almost certainly take a terrible toll on her. Dina and Ellie Credit: HBO The rest of the episode is mostly about Ellie and Dina trying to track down Abby. Dina is good with math, good at triangulation and so forth, and figures out the best way for them to make the approach. We learn a bit more about her backstory also, and why her tragic childhood makes her so amenable to helping Ellie out with her own revenge quest. It's a nice touch, giving Dina more depth and her reasons for accompanying Dina even more grounding. Unfortunately, the route they pick is far, far more deadly than they anticipated. The building they come to isn't just infested, it's crawling with evolved clickers, the 'smart ones' like the one Ellie was bitten by back outside of Jackson. They're quickly overwhelmed. Thankfully, Jesse shows up just in the nick of time. And as silly as that is, on a certain level, as most 'just in the nick of time' moments are, they really wouldn't have made it out otherwise. He comes in guns blazing and the three escape, though the Wolves are in hot pursuit. They flee into the park and this, it just so happens, is where wolves fear to tread. Soon, they see torches in the night. Strange whistles on the night air. They watch as the Scars appear in their goofy robes (sorry, the Scars are just so cheesy to me) and then watch as they disembowel one of their enemies in some kind of ritual sacrifice. You can really see why the Wolves are joining these friendly religious zealots. They get such a warm welcome! Things go badly and the Scars somehow notice our heroes, shooting Dina and rushing after the three of them. This is when Ellie and the others break apart. By the end of the episode, we can only hope that Dina and Jesse made it back to the theater alive. The Scars Credit: HBO All told, another solid episode with some great action and terrifying zombie scenes. I wish I didn't feel so down about the Seraphites, but as I've noted before, they're just way too much like one of the silly factions in The Walking Dead for my taste. A premium HBO show like this should have more nuance. I'm not even against a religious faction, but I'd prefer something a bit less cartoonish and a bit more grounded. These are basically the Amish on PCP. Still, I really like that the air-born plague is back in play and the final scene with Ellie and Nora was brutal and stomach-churning. I'm curious to see how this impacts Ellie. I have a few other questions: We learn that Jesse and Tommy followed our heroes, setting out a day after them which is why they've caught up to them. Jesse tracked them to the hospital using the maps they left at the theater ( a bit far-fetched, but I'll allow it). Will we see Tommy again this season? We have two more episodes, so this seems likely. A bigger question is whether we see Abby. I've seen six episodes of this season, and I'm still only guessing when I say that I think we'll see her next in the finale. I think this is where a very big moment will take place that will set Abby up as a much more central character for Season 3. I suspect that we will see Tommy and Abby around the same time at the end of this season, but that's just a theory. If this plays out like I think it will, then expect a lot more Kaitlyn Dever in Season 3 and a possibly diminished role for Ellie, not to mention her comrades in arms. Again, I wonder how this plays with the audience, especially since non-gamers are still coming to terms with the loss of Joel. I discuss this episode and the 'review-bombing' of the show in my video below: In any case, overall I thought this was yet another strong offering in what has been a much better second half of the season than the first. What did you think of this episode? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook. Also be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me here on this blog. Sign up for my newsletter for more reviews and commentary on entertainment and culture.
