A microbiologist explains what the cordyceps infection in The last of us Would not affect humans in real life. In Naughty Dog’s video game and the HBO adaptation, the Cordyceps infection is a widespread fungus that turns humans into zombie-like beings, causing a global pandemic and the collapse of society. In both the video game and the HBO show, the cordyceps infection takes inspiration from the real-life fungus known as Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, which mainly affects ants and significantly influences their behavior.
In a new video from WIREDMicrobiologist Dan Buckley answers the Internet’s burning questions about microbiology, including whether the Cordyceps infection of The last of us is realistic. Watch the portion of the video below starting at the 6:30 minute mark:
Buckley explains this The Ophiocordyceps fungus only affects insects Since they are cold-blooded and cannot affect people who are warm-blooded. Read his full statement below:
The clicker you saw where the fungus infects people coming out of the person’s head, I wouldn’t worry too much about that unless you’re an insect. The Ophiocordyceps fungus infects many different species of insects, gets into their brain, and then causes the insects to move in such a way that promotes the spread of the fungus so that more ants will become zombies, but insects are cold-blooded. They are very different from us and so I would not think that the fungus would infect humans. If I were worried about a zombie infection for humans, I would really be thinking about madness. Rabies is transmitted by a bite. If you are not vaccinated or treated quickly, it basically gets to your brain, it can make you maybe want to bite people. So we have a zombie infection, we just have really good vaccines for it right now.
Why the Last of Us’ Cordyceps infection wouldn’t affect people in real life?
Internal temperatures of people are too high
The cordyceps infection in The last of us is based on a real fungus called ophiocordyceps unilateralis, commonly known as Cordyceps or the zombie-ant fungus because it mostly infects ants, but also spiders, and causes them to climb to an elevated place, which provides optimal conditions for fungal growth. After the death of the ant, the fungus disperses spores into the environment and infects other ants. The ability of Cordyceps fungus to induce zombie-like symptoms in ants is what inspired The last of us Creator Neil Druckmann to include it in the story.
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Although Ophiocordyceps unilateralis is real and widely infects ants, it is unable to affect humans, as Buckley explains. Insects are cold-blooded, which makes them the perfect hosts for the fungus to grow and thrive. however, Humans are not susceptible to infection from the Cordyceps fungus because of their higher internal temperaturesBut also because of their advanced immune systems. Cordyceps in The last of us Differs from the real-life fungus in several ways, including how it infects hosts and how infected hosts are related.
While Ophiocordyceps unilateralis is unable to affect humans, Fungi can still become a real threat to humans. As mentioned during The last of us‘ Opening scene, global warming would allow cordyceps to evolve and possibly infect humans. The last of us Showing a future in which this terrifying possibility occurs, deliberately blurring the line between the fictional and the factual.
Source: WIRED