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Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, commonly known as zombie-ant fungus, [2] is an insect-pathogenic fungus, discovered by the British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace in 1859, Zombie ants, infected by the Ophiocordyceps unilateralis fungus, are predominantly found in tropical rainforests.
Ophiocordyceps sinensis is a species that infects the larvae of Tibetan ghost moths, and is used extensively in traditional Chinese medicine. [13] [14] [15] There is currently no scientific evidence that use of this species has any clinically detectable effect on human diseases. [14]
The cordyceps "zombie fungus" in 'The Last of Us' is indeed inspired by a real fungi found in ants. But here's what that means for those of us not living in a video-game story.
But it can't jump to humans. According to data from Yale School of Medicine , because humans have evolved, and have a high enough body temperature, inhaling this kind of fungal spore has no effect ...
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O. camponoti-balzani infects ants, and eventually kills the hosts after they move to an ideal location for the fungus to spread its spores. This has earned the species names such as “zombie fungus”, given the fungus has been observed to cause its hosts to bite hard into the substrate it stands on, so that the fungus can then stably grow. [2]
“The Last of Us” on HBO imagines outbreak of zombie fungus that controls the brain of the infected. Fungal disease is a major public health threat in real life.
Ant–fungus mutualism is a symbiosis seen between certain ant and fungal species, in which ants actively cultivate fungus much like humans farm crops as a food source. There is only evidence of two instances in which this form of agriculture evolved in ants resulting in a dependence on fungi for food.