Candidozyma auris (Candida auris) as a harbinger of novel fungal pathogens
Abstract
Mammals are protected from fungal pathogens by two evolutionary pillars: adaptive immunity and elevated body temperature. Anthropogenic climate change is eroding this thermal barrier, while a concurrent decline in human basal body temperature accelerates convergence from both directions. The emergence of Candidozyma auris (Candida auris), a thermotolerant, multidrug-resistant pathogen that arose independently as genetically distinct clades on multiple continents, may exemplify the consequences. Unlike its closest environmental relatives, which grow poorly at mammalian temperatures, C. auris thrives at 37 ◦C, tolerates up to 47 ◦C, persists on hospital surfaces, resists all three major antifungal classes, and causes invasive infections with 30–60% mortality. Its near-simultaneous, independent emergence implicates shared selective pressures, potentially rooted in global environmental change, rather than clonal spread. Here, we review the evolutionary biology, ecology, and clinical significance of C. auris within a framework of climate-driven pathogen emergence, evaluating current hypotheses for its origin and the molecular mechanisms underlying its thermotolerance and virulence. C. auris may represent only the first of many fungal species adapting to breach mammalian thermal defences, making predictive frameworks for anticipating fungal disease emergence an urgent priority.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Understanding the factors influencing fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda J.E. Smith) damage in African smallholder maize fields and quantifying its impact on yield. A case study in Eastern Zimbabwe
- Alarming situation of emerging H5 and H7 avian influenza and effective control strategies
- Livestock and food security: vulnerability to population growth and climate change
- Atmosphere–ocean oxygen and productivity dynamics during early animal radiations
- Characterization of the global distribution and diversified plasmid reservoirs of the colistin resistance gene mcr-9
- The global seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in pigs: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.