“What if the world got a little warmer? Then mushrooms would evolve.” Series The Last of Us, online on Amazon Prime Video, begins with a discussion of epidemiologists on a television set, about the risk of a pandemic due to fungi, because of global warming. The scientist tells how fungi could colonize the world, feeding on human organisms. Spoiler-free, the sequel is as follows: the predictions are coming, due to a parasitic fungus, the cordyceps.
A very real and deadly fungus
In the series, the cordyceps infects humans, grows inside them, and eventually takes over to turn them into zombies. In this case, the mushroom is real, it looks like a kind of caterpillar, and its mechanism is about the same. But it exists in insects only: first, it grows on them, then penetrates them to continue its growth, which leads to their death. Then the spores of the fungus spread out on other insects, in short.
The Last of Us (2023) pic.twitter.com/fphPlZfZKr
— Netflix France (@NetflixFR) February 6, 2023
A mushroom useful in medicine
That said, cordyceps is a priori not dangerous for humans. It is even, as recalled by the washington posta medical tool since it has long been used as an ingredient in some food supplements.
According to the website of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centercordyceps is used in humans because it helps boost the immune system, help the kidneys work properly, and increase strength and endurance. It would also limit the growth of tumorsaccording to several studies.
In summary ? The Last of us is a fiction, inspired by a scientific reality, which a priori should not endanger humans.
