Fungicides May Be Bolstering Anti-Microbial Resistance

New research from the University of Georgia has shown for the first time that compounds used to fight fungal diseases in plants are causing resistance to antifungal medications used to treat people, ScienceDaily reported.

Photo Insert: Aspergillus fumigatus

The study focused on Aspergillus fumigatus, the fungus that causes aspergillosis, a disease that causes life-threatening infections in 300,000 people globally each year. Published in G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics, the study linked agricultural use of azoles -- compounds used to fight fungal diseases in plants -- to diminished effectiveness of the clinical azoles used to treat fungal infections among patients.

"Our results show that resistance to the compounds used to combat fungal infections in humans is developing in agricultural environments," said Marin T. Brewer, a corresponding author of the study and an associate professor of mycology in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

"The samples that we collected in agricultural settings were resistant to both the azoles used in the environment and the clinical azoles used to treat people."

Fungi can be a menace for both people and plants, causing over 1.5 million human deaths annually and crop losses of 20%. It's not unusual to find A. fumigatus in the environment. It's airborne, and it's everywhere. Most people breathe it in without problem but it can cause serious infections in people who have weakened immune systems.

"Azole-resistant A. fumigatus is widespread in agricultural environments and especially things like compost," said Michelle Momany, a corresponding author of the study and a professor of fungal biology in the Department of Plant Biology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.

"Someone who is immunocompromised and at risk for fungal infections should be very cautious in those settings," she said. Co-authors include Brandon Mangum, a graduate student in the Department of Plant Biology, and former UGA students' S. Earl Kang, currently at Ginkgo Bioworks, Tina Melie, currently at the University of Colorado, and Leilani G. Sumabat, currently at the University of the Philippines Diliman.

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