British researchers are warning of one more rising health danger: a drug-resistant mold found in the environment that infects certain people’s lungs.
Aspergillus fumigatus can cause a fungal lung infection called aspergillosis in people with lung conditions or weakened immune systems. Aspergillosis, which affects 10 to 20 million people worldwide, is usually treated with antifungal drugs, but there’s evidence of emerging resistance to these drugs.
This resistance is due to the widespread agricultural use of azole fungicides, which are similar to azole drugs used to treat aspergillosis, according to the study authors.
“Understanding the environmental hotspots and genetic basis of evolving fungal drug resistance needs urgent attention, because resistance is compromising our ability to prevent and treat this disease,” said study co-author Matthew Fisher, a professor in the School of Public Health at Imperial College London.
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