Mutating fungus is infecting and killing approx 25% of people and animals who become infected

September 14, 2013 – HEALTH – A rare fungus found in soil and trees has sickened hundreds of people in British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest in the last decade — and killed dozens — but scientists now say they’re seeing different strains of the potentially deadly bug in additional U.S. states. As of June, 171 cases of infection caused by Cryptococcus gatti, a fungus once confined to tropical climates, had been reported in the U.S. That includes at least 100 cases in Oregon and Washington, where officials have been tracking an outbreak since 2004. But at least 25 cases have been detected in eight states outside of the Northwest since 2009 — and six of those patients died, according to a new report in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases. No one’s calling it a public health crisis; officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say they just want to raise awareness. “It is really, really rare; very few people get infected by this,” said Dr. Julie Harris, a fungal disease expert with the CDC. “You can still go outside, you can still do your daily activities.”Of the six patients in the new tally who died, four succumbed to severe lung and brain infections before they were diagnosed. A previously healthy 18-year-old Georgia woman showed up at a community hospital with a headache and fever — and died within two weeks of getting sick. Of those who provided travel information, none had been to the Pacific Northwest recently, the study found. Thirteen of the newest U.S. cases were reported in California, with five more in Georgia, two in New Mexico and one each in Alabama, Florida, Hawaii, Michigan and Montana. The original outbreak was caused by three specific strains of C. gattii, but the new cases, including those in nearby California, were caused by unrelated strains, Harris said.

theextinctionprotocol.wordpress.com...



Not much to add to this information..... Unlike some infectious agents this particular fungus is not particular and has killed young and old alike. It would appear it has spread (or grown) from the Pacific N.W. all the way to Florida which seems to be a rather large habitat IMO. When everything is considered it is still a small number who have died however, it seems to be a growing problem.

reply to post by 727Sky

This is troubling but limited in its scope so far but,

it seems to be a growing problem.

Unintended pun?

reply to post by 727Sky


This is of particular interest to me because I just got finished catching up with the story to a game called the Last of Us.

I don't think this will be one of those things that ends the world, but it's amazing how every time we turn around there's another something to make us sick or kill us.

so the fungus is among us.

reply to post by 727Sky


Thank you for sharing this information! Star and flag!

Aliens have been infecting us with these DNA altering fungus for year! The truth is unraveling!

AliensRapedMe
reply to post by 727Sky

 

Thank you for sharing this information! Star and flag!

Aliens have been infecting us with these DNA altering fungus for year! The truth is unraveling!

Wow and here I thought it was just a natural evolutionary process of this particular fungus!

You got any reference about this dastardly alien fungal deed being perpetrated on our puny human race?

Hey 727sky:

Good thread. For personal reasons, I began researching fungeses, in general, in the last year or so. The truth seems to be (and I'll start looking for my links when I'm at home and can provide them via bookmarks) that doctors in this country, as even here in Louisiana, it's considered a "sub-tropical" climate, and not truly tropical.....anyway, doctors in this country don't routinely look for fungus infections, even when generalized symptoms like unrelented and not responsive to meds, headache and fever and infection, present.

I have a few medical abstracts bookmarked at home telling stories like a man who contracted what appeared to be symptomatic of walking pneumonia, but despite general antibiotic treatment for such, did not get better beyond a certain point: in other words, every time the antibiotics were through, after a 7 or 14 day course, he would rebound and be sick again. And even worse, the next time. He had a not so out of the ball park fungus....asperillogosis, I believe it's called. But fungus, in general, is seen in the US so infrequently, up until recently, that is, that the doctors treating him didn't even think to look for it, as those tests are a whole different "animal," from standard diagnostic testing.

There's also "Morgellon's Disease," whatever the CDC's interpretation of it is as being "nonexistent," to take into account. Some of the symptoms seem like closely related to Lyme Disease, which may give one a challenged immune system to then allow a fungus to set it, remain undiagnosed, and progress as it's untreated. Just Candida fungus, rather common, remains vastly undiagnosed in this country. And treatement is problematic: requires a total change in diet and careful attention to that and sugar and/or carbohydrate intake (that breaks down to sugar once eaten), as well as anti fungal drugs that can weaken and compromise the immune system, make other medical issues worse and some even require regular testing of liver function, while being treated.....

Again, good thread.
Tetra50

Thanks for sharing, as it needs to be noted.

Specifically the concern for stirring it up in the outside environment.

Veterinary Cases in the Pacific Northwest

To date, many species of animals, including dogs, cats, ferrets, porpoises, llamas, alpacas, birds, and a horse, have been confirmed to have C. gattii infections

Identified risk factors for animals include disturbance of soil or vegetation caused by hiking, digging, logging, and construction. These activities can potentially increase aerial dispersal of the infectious particles and contact with soil and tree cuttings (23). The distribution of isolates recovered from human and animal sources and from the environment is shown in the Figure.

continued...

Spread of Cryptococcus gattii into Pacific Northwest Region of the United States

Just as a point of interest, in case those reading are unaware, viruses, also, lurk in terrain and uncut or freshly cut woods, streptococcus, being one, in strains via human and animal (generalized strep) and animals: horse strep, which is called "strangles," and resides in uncut woodlands, and raises its diseasability, when such woodlands are cut, and turned into pasture. Not really on topic, here, but may be of interest and provide extra information about what is lurking in the forest, that will rise up once the forest is cut... In fact, being this "fungus" is called Cryptococcus, it may do well for me to do some research and investigation into the possible link, just by similarity of names, from Streptococcus virus being related to a fungal disease called Cryptococcus, that seems to follow the same route for existence (in the undisturbed earth) as the viral disease Streptococcus......
Tetra50

Although this is not directly related to this particular fungi, I find this to be of particular interest in this thread, and submit the following quote and source for your perusal, along with magnetic resonance implications, via the article:

Proton Magenetic Nuclear Resonance

Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance—Based Metabonomics for Rapid Diagnosis of Meningitis and Ventriculitis
Muireann Coen1a, Matthew O'Sullivan2, William A. Bubb1, Philip W. Kuchel1, and Tania Sorrell2
+ Author Affiliations

1School of Molecular and Microbial Biosciences, Australia
2Centre for Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, Westmead Millennium Institute, University of Sydney, Australia
+ Author Notes

↵a Present affiliation: Department of Biological Chemistry, Imperial College London, United Kingdom.

Reprints or correspondence: Dr. Muireann Coen, Dept. of Biological Chemistry, Biomedical Sciences Div., Imperial College London, Sir Alexander Fleming Bldg., South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ ([email protected]).
Abstract

Background. Reduction of mortality associated with bacterial meningitis and postsurgical cerebral ventriculitis is dependent on early diagnosis and institution of appropriate therapy. Metabonomics rapidly defines metabolic profiles of biological fluids through the use of high-throughput analytical techniques combined with statistical pattern recognition tools.

Methods. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR)-based metabonomics was applied to (1) lumbar cerebrospinal fluid samples collected prospectively from a cohort of patients with bacterial, fungal, or viral meningitis and from control subjects without neurological disease and (2) ventricular cerebrospinal fluid samples from patients with ventriculitis associated with an external ventricular drain and from control subjects. 1H NMR spectra were analyzed by the unsupervised statistical method of principal components analysis.

Results. Metabonomic analysis clearly distinguished patients with bacterial or fungal meningitis (11 patients) from patients with viral meningitis (12) and control subjects (27) and clearly distinguished patients with postsurgical ventriculitis (5) from postsurgical control subjects (10). Metabolites of microbial and host origin that were responsible for class separation were determined. Metabonomic data also correlated with the onset and course of infection in a patient with 2 episodes of bacterial ventriculitis and with response to therapy in another patient with cryptococcal meningitis.

Conclusions. Metabonomic analysis is rapid, requires minimal sample processing, and is not targeted to specific microbial pathogens, making the platform potentially suitable for use in the diagnostic laboratory. This pilot study indicates that metabonomic analysis of cerebrospinal fluid is feasible and a potentially more powerful diagnostic tool than conventional rapid laboratory indicators for distinguishing bacterial from viral meningitis and for monitoring therapy. This should have important implications for early management, reduced empirical use of antibiotics, and treatment duration.

Received June 8, 2005.

Worth a look see, and may have all kinds of other implications, via both resonance and nuclear
Tetra50

So a rare fungus that has killed less people in 20 years, than say flesh eating disease, is a worry?
This is propaganda. There will be some vaccine or medicine for said fungus in a month or so, but let's scare everyone to death about it first using the media.

I'd worry more about the fungus killing all our bats.

reply to post by 727Sky


This may be the same one, I had read about a fungus in Oregon that was killibg people. From what I read it killed pretty much anyone that became infected.

reply to post by tetra50


Hi Tetra50!

Thanks for bringing us information about this fungal disease which has been spreading throughout the US and Canada. Even though it really hasn't infected/killed too many people yet, it's still a scary thing to think about!

Fungi (*note the spelling for the plural of fungus ) are pretty resilient and can spread fast. If a strain went nuts that we had no treatment for, it could do a lot of damage pretty quickly.

I read all of your posts here and thought I'd help you in understanding a few basic points since you seem quite interested in fungi and related diseases...and spoke of similarly named organisms, wondering about potential connections. Example: Streptococcus and Cryptococcus.

Firstly: Streptococcus is not a virus; it's a bacteria. This matters greatly, as antibiotics will kill bacteria, but are not effective against a viral infection.

Secondly: The similarity in names, the -coccus part in Streptococcus and Cryptococcus, doesn't have anything to do with habitat or method of transmission.

Bacteria are different shapes and sizes when viewed under the microscope. Cocci (plural of coccus) are small, round bacteria, found paired, or in chains like a pearl necklace (Streptococcus), or in grape-like clusters (Staphylococcus).

Fungi also have different shapes and sizes, even changing shapes during different stages of their life. One life stage of Cryptococcus appears as small spheres, hence the -coccus part of the name.

The scientific names of organisms are mostly based on Latin root words and usually are descriptive of the organism in some way (in this case, based on shape and configuration).

I hope this helps you a bit as you do more research!

reply to post by PtolemyII


I do not see this as propaganda, but rather information. It's up to the individual to decide whether to panic or not. Granted, some people live for panic or by panicking others.

Nobody gets out of life alive.

reply to post by KittyGalore


Thanks so much, KittyGalore. It's been a long time since Biology class, so this information is, indeed, very helpful. Would you mind if I u2u you, if I have more questions? I would really like to have the ability to communicate with someone who knows a lot about this. Thanks for giving me that info. (And especially for correcting my funguses to fungi, LOL.
Tetra50

I"ve been watching this story for a while. I find it really spooky for personal reasons. In the past, this fungus was 'just' on the west coast'. Now it's spread is in Georgia and Michigan. I cant' take anti-fungal meds. And the thought of this thing spreading and getting into the brain and lungs ... which it can do ... is spooky.

I go to vegas every year ( I hate the place ) anyways.... 2 yrs in a row I came in contact w/ something outside that made my lips and face swell 3-4x's its natural size w/ hives. My breathing was fine other then having an anxiety attack!!!

I thought The reason for me being sensitive to something down there is because just like the article said... Warm environment. They don't get -42 to below windchill to kill the bacteria ... Spores.

Anyways... If anyone knows what I'm coming in contact with in Vegas please let me know. The 1st time it happened I do remember touching a bush .... The 2nd time it happened I was just walking down the sidewalk and came into no contact w/ nature.

My Dr. Ordered me an eppy pen (?) because she said each time I come into contact with whatever is affecting me will continue to get worse. She was right because the 2nd time I came in contact it scare the hell outta me. My 1st contact wasn't until my 4 -5 th year down there.

To all the smart Alec's ... lol my Anxiety had nothing to do with over spending... :0P lol

reply to post by 727Sky


i read your linked web page...i usually get a link to the Extinction Protocol site from the dozen or so sources if frequent every day but your post was todays way of linking to the EP site, thanks


i have a sneaky notion that many new fungi are popping up becaue of the popularity of Mulches around our yards


if you note my AVatar, its of a typically 5 sided or 5 column structure orange in color that i call 'Temples'


these odd things might have something in common with the deadly Fungi thats spreading


peace

reply to post by 727Sky


There's a reason they call it the Medical Military Industrial Complex.
www.libertysflame.com...

Interesting. So another fungi is rearing its ugly head.

Pseudogymnoascus destructans is killing the bats in the US. Nosema bombi is believed to be killing the bumblebees. Nosema ceranae is a suspect in contributing to colony collapse disorder among honey bees but that study has been called into question. Milder winters could result in the increase of range or moving of territory for a number of species, including fungi.