In the wake of Hurricane Helene’s devastation in North Carolina, a new threat emerged: fungi. As residents grappled with weeks without power and months without clean water, mold and other fungi flourished in the damp aftermath. This hidden consequence of climate disasters has sparked the formation of Climate and Fungi (CLIF), an interdisciplinary research team at Duke. Led by Erica J. Washington, PhD, and Asiya Gusa, PhD, from the Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, CLIF aims to understand how fungal communities evolve in warming climates and post-disaster environments—and what that means for human health. CLIF’s research explores critical questions: Will fungi become more heat-tolerant—and more dangerous—as global temperatures rise? With fungal infections already causing 6.5 million illnesses and 2.5 million deaths annually, the stakes are high. Duke’s “Fungi in a Warming World” symposium further explored this urgent issue. READ MORE.
Photo of flooded area by Serge Lavoie from Pexels.