Deadly brain shrinking fungus found in suburban Australia
A fungus titled as the world’s second deadliest has been discovered in suburban Cairns, with researchers fearing it could be spread throughout the Australian tropics.
The Poison Fire Coral fungus has caused multiple deaths throughout Asia and was originally identified by James Cook University’s Dr Matt Barrett after a local photographer took a photo of it growing in Redlynch, a suburb in western Cairns.
“Of the hundred or so toxic mushrooms that are known to researchers, this is the only one in which the toxins can be absorbed through the skin,” said Dr Barrett, as he warned people to not touch the fungus.
“Just touching the Fire Coral fungus can cause dermatitis (reddening or swelling of the skin). If eaten, it causes a horrifying array of symptoms: initially stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhea, fever and numbness, followed (over hours or days) by delamination of skin on face, hands and feet, and shrinking of the brain, which, in turn, causes altered perception, motion difficulties and speech impediments.”
If left untreated, consumption can prove to be fatal due to organ failure and brain nerve damage.
The brightly coloured fungus is usually found in the mountains of Japan and Korea, though it has been spotted in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.
Scientists now believe it is naturally growing in Cairns.
“This record extends the distribution of the fungus considerably, and it may be even more widespread in tropical Australia,” Dr Barrett warned.
“The fact that we can find such a distinctive and medically important fungus like the Poison Fire Coral right in our backyard shows we have much to learn about fungi in northern Australia.”