• Question: Are there any parasites that are a fungus that affect humans?

    Asked by The GameMaster to Mark, Linda, Koi, Franco, Claire on 20 Jun 2016.
    • Photo: Franco Falcone

      Franco Falcone answered on 20 Jun 2016:

      The only candidate that springs to my mind is Malassezia, which causes dandruff, but this fungus is normally seen as opportunistic infection, one which will take advantage when your immune defenses are down.

    • Photo: Linda Anagu

      Linda Anagu answered on 20 Jun 2016:

      @Gamemaster, scientifically, we do not classify fungi as parasites. parasites are bigger than bacteria and fungi and contributes absolutely nothing to the host. They also require part of the host food machinery for survival and hop from host to host through out their life cycle. They deliberately want to infect you to survive. Some fungi and bacteria may contribute something to the host and may be infections under certain conditions. They can live outside the host and are able to produce the food they need or they just need basic ingredients which they get from the host or from any substance like bread or other foods outside the body. They do not need a vector. Fungi don not need humans to survive and if conditions are harsh they can form a hard crusted form called a spore. We do not refer to them naturally as parasites.

    • Photo: Claire Bourke

      Claire Bourke answered on 20 Jun 2016:

      Linda and Franco have given great answers there. Sometimes it can be a bit of a grey area whether something is a ‘parasite’ (living off the host an providing no benefit), a ‘commensal’ (living off the host but causing no harm and no benefit) or a ‘symbiont’ (living off the host but also benefiting it in some way). There are certainly commensal fungi that live on or in the body as well as fungal speices that can cause harmful infections (e.g. athlete’s foot) or become much worse in people with weakened immune systems, but Linda is right that we don’t tend to think of these as being true parasites.

      The more we investigate microorganisms and how they interact with the body, the better we understand their interrelationships and that is true of fungi as well as parasites.

    • Photo: Mark Booth

      Mark Booth answered on 20 Jun 2016:

      Hi Game Master

      The Cordyceps fugus is classified as a ‘endoparasitoid’ in that it’s pathology and mode of action resembles those of a classic parasite. Basically it invades and replaces host tissues before pushing out an elongated fruit body. Search online for cordyceps and ants to see the effect it has – there is a BBC film about it

    • Photo: Arporn Wangwiwatsin

      Arporn Wangwiwatsin answered on 20 Jun 2016:

      Hi TheGameMAster,

      There are fungus that can affect humans (and there are fungal spores floating about in the air anyway). However, people with normal immune functions are rarely affected by it. People with HIV or other immunocompromised diseases though can be easily infected.

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