United States: According to a new research finding, a not-so-easily treatable drug-resistant fungal infection may be present in anyone’s close proximity, such as a local garden center.
The investigators from the University of Georgia (UGA) in Athens found high quantity of multidrug-resistant fungi in compost, soil as well as in flower bulbs sold at famous retailers.
What more have the experts stated?
According to Marin Brewer, the study lead author said, “Gardening is a nice, stress-relieving hobby. But I’m nervous for people who may not be aware that working with compost and flower bulbs could pose a risk to their health,” as US News reported.
Brewer is working as a professor at UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

More about the drug-resistant fungus
The fungus in the spotlight right now is scientifically called Aspergillus fumigatus. It is found in soil, grow naturally. It can cause breathing difficulties if inhaled.
People with healthy immune systems can probably kick this fungus and make it go away but those who have weak immune systems can become very sick or even die if they come in contact with a variant that is resistant to multiple anti-fungus drugs.
Immunocompromised people are those who are struggling with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, type 2 diabetes, HIV/AIDS, and COVID-19, among others. Any people on immunosuppressants, say, cancer patients or persons who have received an organ transplant, also stand a high risk, as US News reported.
A. fumigatus is already on health experts’ radar: Experts believe that more than 2 million folks are infected worldwide, and the World Health Organization (WHO) has just added the fungus to its list of priority pathogens.
In otherwise healthy people, A. fumigatus can cause aspergillomas — “clusters” inside the lungs. These may clear on their own, or people may require anti-fungal medicines.
How was the latest study conducted?
In the new study, the specific compost, soil, flower bulbs, and different types of foods taken by Brewer and the research team came from the store-bought samples collected from the big box retail stores during the period of 2019 to 2021.
Among several varieties of A. fumigatus, more than 500 types were isolated from the products, over 92 percent of them in flower bulbs, soil, compost, and peanuts.
The team identified resources that contained drug-resistant strains in the soil, on bulbs of flowers, including daffodils, dahlias, gladioli, and tulips, and in compost made from manure.
According to Brewer, “We found dozens of strains of resistant fungi in just 1 gram of compost,” as UGA news reported.
“Based on our findings, there could be tens of thousands of potentially resistant strains in one bag of compost,” he continued.
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