Ophiocordyceps unilateralis

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Ophiocordyceps unilateralis
An ant infected with Ophiocordyceps unilateralis bites onto the underside of a leaf. The image below is rotated 180 degrees to better show details.

An ant infected with Ophiocordyceps unilateralis bites onto the underside of a leaf. The image below is rotated 180 degrees to better show details.

Systematics
Class : Sordariomycetes
Subclass : Hypocreomycetidae
Order : Crust ball mushrooms (Hypocreales)
Family : Ophiocordycipitaceae
Genre : Ophiocordyceps
Type : Ophiocordyceps unilateralis
Scientific name
Ophiocordyceps unilateralis
( Tul. ) Petch

Ophiocordyceps unilateralis is a parasitic fungus that grows on ants and manipulates their behavior in such a way that the host has no control over its own body.

features

Due to the pantropical distribution and occurrence on different host species, the fungus is very variable and several anamorphs have been described. The fruiting bodies consist of a wiry but pliable, darkly pigmented club that grows directly from the back of the dead ant's head. On the side is the fruit layer in the form of plates, the stroma , in which perithecia are formed, from which the relatively large spores are released. In some forms the plates with the perithecia appear to be terminal, in others they flow into one another and a head forms.

Ecology and diffusion

The fungal spores germinate on the exoskeleton of ants. It is mainly Camponotus leonardi that are attacked, but also other representatives of the Ross ants and species of Polyrhachis . However, there are probably several species (see systematics). The hyphae penetrate the insect's body, migrate to the brain and influence its behavior. After an infection period of three to six days, the insect moves to a place that offers optimal living conditions for the fungus and dies there. The fungus manipulates the ant so that it bites onto surfaces such as the underside of leaves or bark. This behavior is interpreted as an extended phenotype of the fungus, since the biting means a fixation in place for the fungus and creates optimized environmental conditions for the fruiting body development. Often high densities of dead ants are observed in tropical forests, so these finds are referred to as cemeteries. The fungus now forms the fruiting bodies and new spores. The spores, which are too heavy for wind to spread, fall to the ground, form secondary spores there, infect passing ants and thus close the cycle. As a presumed alternative strategy, the ants usually build their nests high up in the treetops and rarely come to the ground, where the risk of infection is greatest, as the fungus needs high humidity. The fungus occurs worldwide in tropical and subtropical forests. In the Messel Pit , 48 million year old fossil finds of ants were found that had bitten into leaves, which underlines the age of this manipulation of behavior.

Systematics

Ophiocordyceps unilateralis , like all core clubs , has long been placed in the genus Cordyceps within the Clavicipitaceae . In the meantime, the core lobes are divided into three types in two different families. Ophiocordyceps unilateralis is part of the Ophiocordycipitaceae. Recent research shows that Ophiocordyceps unilateralis is a whole species complex. In a relatively narrow area in Minas Gerais in Brazil, four new species previously assigned to Ophiocordyceps unilateralis , each specializing in one species of ant, were discovered.

Medical potential

Ophiocordyceps unilateralis contains some bioactive substances that are potential agents for immune modulation , anti- tumor , hyperglycaemia and hypercholesterolemia . Six bioactive naphthoquinone derivatives were isolated from Ophiocordyceps unilateralis , which showed in vitro activity against malaria . There are also studies that use red naphthoquinone pigments as a color in the food or cosmetics industries.

Media reception

In the PlayStation 3 / PlayStation 4 game The Last of Us , a fungus infects people's brains, turning them into extremely aggressive, zombie-like creatures that attack other people in order to spread the fungus. The producers said they were inspired by Ophiocordyceps unilateralis .

The author MR Carey published his post-apocalyptic novel The Girl with All the Gifts in 2014 , in which zombie-like mutants ( Hungries ) are also infested with a variant of Ophiocordyceps unilateralis .

In the sixth episode of the television series Legion , the mushroom is compared to love.

swell

  • MB Pontoppidan, W. Himaman, NL Hywel-Jones, JJ Boomsma, DP Hughes: Graveyards on the move: the spatio-temporal distribution of dead ophiocordyceps-infected ants. In: PloS one. Volume 4, number 3, 2009, item no. E4835. doi: 10.1371 / journal.pone.0004835 . PMID 19279680 , PMC 2652714 (free full text).
  • HC Evans, RA Samson: Cordyceps species and their anamorphs pathogenic on ants (Formicidae) in tropical forest ecosystems II. The Camponotus (Formicinae) complex. In: Trans, Br. Mycol. Soc. 82, 1984, pp. 127-150.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c H. C. Evans, RA Samson: Cordyceps species and their anamorphs pathogenic on ants (Formicidae) in tropical forest ecosystems II. The Camponotus (Formicinae) complex. In: Trans, Br. Mycol. Soc. 82, 1984, pp. 127-150.
  2. ↑ a b c M. B. Pontoppidan, W. Himaman, NL Hywel-Jones, JJ Boomsma, DP Hughes: Graveyards on the move: the spatio-temporal distribution of dead ophiocordyceps-infected ants. In: PloS one. Volume 4, number 3, 2009, item no. E4835. doi: 10.1371 / journal.pone.0004835 . PMID 19279680 , PMC 2652714 (free full text).
  3. ↑ Fungi reprogram ants - and have done for millions of years. In: Information Service Science . August 18, 2010, accessed August 31, 2010.
  4. ↑ HC Evans: Mycopathogens of Insects of Epigeal and Aerial habitat. In: N. Wilding, NM Collins, PM Hammond, JF Webber (Eds.): Insect-Fungal Interactions. Academic Press, London 1989, pp. 205-238.
  5. ^ David P. Hughes, Torsten Wappler, Conrad C. Labandeira: Ancient death-grip leaf scars reveal ant-fungal parasitism. In: Biology Letters (The Royal Society). August 18, 2010. 6
  6. ↑ GH Sung, NL Hywel-Jones, JM Sung, JJ Luangsa-Ard, B. Shrestha et al: Phylogenetic classification of Cordyceps and the clavicipitaceous fungi. In: Studies in Mycology. 57, 2007, pp. 5-59. doi: 10.3114 / sim.2007.57.01 .
  7. ^ HC Evans, SL Elliot, DP Hughes: Hidden Diversity Behind the Zombie-Ant Fungus Ophiocordyceps unilateralis: Four New Species Described from Carpenter Ants in Minas Gerais, Brazil. In: PLoS ONE . 6 (3), 2011, Art. No. e17024. doi: 10.1371 / journal.pone.0017024 .
  8. ^ JH Xiao, JJ Zhong: Secondary Metabolites from Cordyceps Species and Their Antitumor Activity Studies . In: Recent Patents on Biotechnology . tape 1 , no. 2 , June 2007, ISSN  1872-2083 , p. 123-137 , doi : 10.2174 / 187220807780809454 , PMID 19075836 ( ingentaconnect.com ).
  9. ↑ P. Kittakoopa, J. Punyaa, P. Kongsaeree, Y. Lertwerawat, A. Jintasirikul, M. Tanticharoena, Y. Thebtaranonth: Bioactive naphthoquinones from Cordyceps unilateralis . In: Phytochemistry . tape 52 , no. 3 , October 1999, ISSN  0031-9422 , p. 453-457 , doi : 10.1016 / S0031-9422 (99) 00272-1 .
  10. ↑ P. Wongsa, K. Tasanatai, P. Watts, N. Hywel-Jones: isolation and in vitro cultivation of the insect pathogenic fungus Cordyceps unilateralis . In: Mycological Research . tape 109 , Pt 8, August 2005, ISSN  0953-7562 , p. 936-940 , doi : 10.1017 / S0953756205003321 , PMID 16175796 .
  11. ↑ P. Unagul, P. Wongsa, P. Kittakoop, S. Intamas, P. Srikitikulchai, M. Tanticharoen: Production of red pigments by the insect pathogenic fungus Cordyceps unilateralis . In: Journal of Industrial Microbiology & Biotechnology . tape 32 , no. 4 , April 2005, ISSN  1367-5435 , p. 135-140 , doi : 10.1007 / s10295-005-0213-6 , PMID 15891934 .
  12. ↑ gameinformer.com
  13. ^ MR Carey: The Girl with All the Gifts. Orbit Books, London 2014, ISBN 978-0-356-50015-7 .
  14. ↑ Josh Wigler: 'Legion' Star Aubrey Plaza Breaks Down Her "Most Difficult Scene" of the Series. The Hollywood Reporter, March 15, 2017, accessed April 9, 2018 .