An apocalypse might be right around the corner, as The Wall Street Journal reports that dangerous fungi, such as those responsible for Valley Fever — diagnosed by symptoms resembling those of the flu — has begun spreading across the U.S. That’s no news to The Last of Us fans, whose knowledge of the fungus known as cordyceps has prepared them for just such an occurrence. In fact, they’ve been preaching of an impending outbreak since 2013, when Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us game dramatized a supposedly-fictional pandemic caused by a mutated cordyceps strand. Shortly thereafter, fans came to realize that the higher-ups at Naughty Dog were inspired by a real-life fungus known as Ophiocordyceps unilateralis (cordyceps for short), otherwise called the “zombie ant fungus,” which is known to infect insects.
“The human body’s average temperature of 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit has long been too hot for most fungi to thrive, infectious-disease specialists say. But as temperatures have risen globally, some fungi might be adapting to endure more heat stress, including conditions within the human body,” The Wall Street Journal writes. The publication managed to get a professional opinion from Peter Pappas, an infectious-disease specialist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. “As fungi are exposed to more consistent elevated temperatures, there’s a real possibility that certain fungi that were previously harmless suddenly become potential pathogens,” he said.
This may sound uncannily familiar to viewers of HBO’s live-action adaptation of The Last of Us, whose opening scene describes the whole process by which fungi can invade the human body and consciousness, stripping them of their free will and morality. “The World Health Organization has identified Cryptococcus, Coccidioides, Histoplasma and Candida auris as being among the fungal pathogens of greatest threat to people,” as relayed by The Wall Street Journal. Although there have been no known Ophiocordyceps infections in people, The Last of Us diehards aren’t so convinced that it won’t someday come to be. And if that happens, well… as the TV scientist observes, “we lose.”
Bacteria and viruses are bad enough; COVID-19 has resulted in tragic loss of life and health worldwide, of course, and remains an active threat. But the specter of fungi at least theoretically capable of taking over our very minds? Pardon us while we burst into tears.
For anyone keeping up with HBO’s The Last of Us series, they’ll have heard Joel’s account of how the cordyceps outbreak started. He tells Ellie that a mutated strand of cordyceps contaminated a major staple crop, such as wheat or sugar. Those infected products were shipped out to unsuspecting homes all across America and the globe, whereupon everyday folks consumed it, and vice-versa. At first, they complained of sickness, then the infection started, and bite after bite, little by little… it spread.
That being said, it looks like there aren’t many who are willing to give up on wheat-based products in the foreseeable future.
Realistically, there’s more chance of other species of fungi mutating before cordyceps ever does. Still, we may one small step away from a giant apocalypse. Thankfully, there’s millions of gamers and binge-watchers out there who have learned the ways of survival from a grumpy smuggler and a smart-mouthed teenager. In the wise words of Bill; Not today, cordyceps, “you new world order, jackboot f**ks.”