A Deadly Fungus Kills 200,000 People And Leaves Several Millions With Lung Diseases And Allergies

A Deadly Fungus Kills 200,000 People And Leaves Several Millions With Lung Diseases And Allergies
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Aspergillus fumigatus, a deadly fungus kills more than 200,000 people worldwide, each year. In addition, several millions of people suffer from lung diseases and allergies caused by this fungus. A research team has now succeeded in taking a promising approach to reducing the consequences of this fungal infection.

An international science team discovered how the immune system responds to this fungal infection

Every year, Aspergillus fumigatus causes more than 200,000 deaths and causes lung disease and allergies in several millions of patients. Now, with the participation of British, German, and American scientists, the team has found how to fight against the deadly fungus.

Getting infected with Aspergillus fumigatus fungus is one of the most dreaded complications for patients undergoing surgery such as transplantation. In a weakened immune system, the naturally occurring mold can enter the bloodstream and cause an infection of the internal organs which can eventually lead to septicemia.

An international team of scientists has recently published a report about the study in the journal Nature. The team was able to discover the exact body’s immune response to the dangerous disease-causing fungus.

Over 50% of the patients infected with Aspergillus fumigatus die

This deadly fungus is so dangerous because it is very difficult to diagnose and treat. For this reason, scientists have long been trying to understand how the human immune system recognizes the fungus and respond to it this kind of research being important to develop therapies that activate the body’s defenses systems.

“A better understanding of how our immune system responds to the intruder is crucial to making it better in infected people recognize and develop new therapies. We have now shown that our immune system reacts to parts of the fungus that we did not know before they were detected. While this discovery is a big step forward, it also highlights how complex the fight against these fungi is,” summarized the study the Professor Gordon Brown, director of the Medical Research Council Center for Medical Mycology at the University of Aberdeen.


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