Indian man is world’s first person to contract plant fungus infection

A 61-year-old Indian man from eastern Kolkata city became the first in the world to catch an infection from a plant fungus.

Doctors claimed that this is the first case of human infection by the microorganism, saying that it demonstrates the crossover of plant pathogen into humans when working in close contact with plant fungi.

The man, who worked as a plant mycologist and whose identity has not been revealed, had gone to Apollo Multispeciality Hospitals after complaining of hoarse voice, cough, fatigue, and difficulty in swallowing and anorexia for three months, according to journal Medical Mycology Case Reports.

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While undergoing medical check-up, the CT-scan of his neck revealed that the man had a paratracheal abscess.

His pus samples were then sent for testing to the WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference & Research on Fungi of Medical Importance.

It was later found that he had been infected with Chondrostereum purpureum – the same fungus that causes silver leaf disease in plants.

“Chondrostereum purpureum is a plant fungus that causes silver leaf disease in plants, particularly those in the rose family. This is the first instance of a plant fungus causing disease in a human. Conventional techniques (microscopy and culture) failed to identify the fungus,” the report added.

“Only through sequencing could the identity of this unusual pathogen be revealed. This case highlights the potential of environmental plant fungi to cause disease in humans and stresses the importance of molecular techniques to identify the causative fungal species,” it said.

The infection has alarmed health experts as it defied their understanding of the possibility of plant fungus infecting human beings.

Notably, the case resembles the events occurring in the hit show ‘The Last of Us' – which is itself inspired by a real-life bacteria that turns ants into ‘zombies’and can wipe out entire colonies.

In this case, it is said that the 61-year-old made a full recovery after receiving two antifungal medications for two months.

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