Potentially deadly fungus spreading in U.S. and Canada | Reuters

[posey]

Potentially deadly fungus spreading in U.S. and Canada
WASHINGTON
Thu Apr 22, 2010 6:22pm EDTWASHINGTON (Reuters) - A potentially deadly strain of fungus is spreading among animals and people in the northwestern United States and the Canadian province of British Columbia, researchers reported on Thursday.

U.S. | Health | COP15

The airborne fungus, called Cryptococcus gattii, usually only infects transplant and AIDS patients and people with otherwise compromised immune systems, but the new strain is genetically different, the researchers said.

"This novel fungus is worrisome because it appears to be a threat to otherwise healthy people," said Edmond Byrnes of Duke University in North Carolina, who led the study.

"The findings presented here document that the outbreak of C. gattii in Western North America is continuing to expand throughout this temperate region," the researchers said in their report, published in the Public Library of Science journal PLoS Pathogens here

"Our findings suggest further expansion into neighboring regions is likely to occur and aim to increase disease awareness in the region."

The new strain appears to be unusually deadly, with a mortality rate of about 25 percent among the 21 U.S. cases analyzed, they said.

"From 1999 through 2003, the cases were largely restricted to Vancouver Island," the report reads.

"Between 2003 and 2006, the outbreak expanded into neighboring mainland British Columbia and then into Washington and Oregon from 2005 to 2009. Based on this historical trajectory of expansion, the outbreak may continue to expand into the neighboring region of Northern California, and possibly further."

The spore-forming fungus can cause symptoms in people and animals two weeks or more after exposure. They include a cough that lasts for weeks, sharp chest pain, shortness of breath, headache, fever, nighttime sweats and weight loss.

It has also turned up in cats, dogs, an alpaca and a sheep.

Freezing can kill the fungus and climate change may be helping it spread, the researchers said.

(Editing by Eric Beech)


Potentially deadly fungus spreading in U.S. and Canada | Reuters




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[posey]

I just heard it on FOX news and they said the Drs. are saying, ha, nothing to worry about".

Wonder why I'm not shocked.

[Bee]

This Cryptococcus Gattii also causes skin lesions. Among many other symptoms that sound familiar.

[Steve Frey]

From my point of view this is friken scary as hell. Cryptococcus gattii was formally known as Cryptococcus neoformans var gattii, Cryptococcus neoformans is one of the fungi that has a significant genome alignment with the sponge, and the alignment scored very high with the BLAST program at the gene bank. I made a spreadsheet showing the significant genome alignments between several sponge species and bacteria, fungi, protozoans, and nematodes.

18s ribosomal RNA alignments with sponges

This fungi replicates by budding and has a capsule composed mostly of polysaccharides , the sponge replicates by budding and secretes polysaccharides, combined with the genomic alignments we have pretty solid evidence supporting the sponge theory folks.

[Venetia]

I see what you are saying Steve-

A for instance:

The Cryptococcus neoformans Phylum: Basidiomycota

has 87% alignment with Axinella corrugata

I like the spreadsheet!

~V~

[Steve Frey]

Thanks Venetia, yes you got it, a genomic alignment of 87% with a score of 1973, to the best of my knowledge this is a significantly high score given by BLAST. In order to determine the relevance of the scoring system I decided to compare a particular genome against itself, which would of course be a 100% alignment, BLAST gave that alignment a score in the 3000's, so a score near 2000 should be very significant.

Interestingly just about every organism that has significant genomic alignments with sponges are pathogenic to either plants, animals, or both.

[brat789]

Drs. say its nothing to worry about....sure because they don't know a damn thing about it because it wasn't in their TEXT books. They seem to be a bunch of robots, if they don't know about it it doesn't exist. It is creepy and since I found out about Morgellons I have often wondered how fungus and parasites haven't taken on the world already. They are so hearty and hard to kill....I remember reading about a parasite that seeks out the lung so that you cough it out and swallow it and it can get into your intestine. If that's not smart for a parasite I don't know what is.

My mother mentioned this to me when she heard it on Fox News yesterday, and I hadn't looked at it. Ironically I had to have my cat put down this morning and I am truly convinced it was some kind of fungal infection of the lung. When I looked at fungal infection + cats lung this fungus came up. Needless to say I am devastated about my cat , it was unexpected and the emergency vet had no idea what it was, but I sense the same stuff that's affecting us, was in his lung. I also curse the day my husband decided to put mulch down, because I can't help but blame a big smelly pile of mold harboring, ugly, fungus loving mulch. I wouldn't doubt this fungus has a part in all of this.

[Steve Frey]

I agree with you brat, learning how not to think for yourself must be a prerequisite for medical school. It's really sad when you trust doctors for absolutely nothing, as fas as I'm concerned they got everything wrong.

Sorry for your loss brat.

[Steve Frey]

[brat789]

Thank you, Steve.

The thing that irritates me too is that we have to rely on them to get treatment for anything, and if they don't believe in something we're the ones that suffer. I have come to find that many Drs. are useless. I went to the Dr. years ago for severe stomach pains and they kept telling me to take Antacid. Then they finally labelled it IBS and told me I could go on Zelnorm which did nothing. They shrugged their shoulders and sent me home. Well thank goodness for support boards because through dietary changes, Magnesium and a few other things I don't have flare ups anymore. If I had relied on them I'd have a miserable existence of chronic pain. Because dietary changes aren't in their medical books apparently, or herbal supplements, its all about pushing prescriptions and many times they don't even help and that's if they believe its not in your head (they thought IBS was in patient's heads as well).