JERUSALEM, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) — Israeli and German researchers have found that a virus living inside a type of deadly fungus can make the fungus far more dangerous to humans, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem said in a statement on Thursday.
The study, published in Nature Microbiology, revealed that the virus gives the Aspergillus fumigatus fungus a significant survival advantage.
Aspergillus fumigatus is responsible for most invasive fungal infections in humans and is particularly lethal for individuals with weakened immune systems. Despite decades of research, mortality rates remain near 50 percent.
The team discovered that the hidden virus acts like a booster, helping the fungus endure stress such as heat and oxidative conditions inside mammalian lungs. When the virus was removed, the fungus became much weaker. It lost the ability to reproduce efficiently, produced less protective melanin, and caused far less damage in infected animals.
When antiviral treatments were used to suppress the virus during infection, survival rates in mammals improved.
According to the researchers, the viruses that infect fungi are called mycoviruses. They do not cause illness by themselves but influence the severity and aggressiveness of the fungal infection once it occurs. This insight could transform how doctors approach the treatment of fungal infections and pave the way for new therapeutic strategies.
They concluded that weakening the fungus by removing its viral partner could give the immune system and existing drugs a better chance to fight the infection. ■