UF researchers traced a drug-resistant fungal outbreak, revealing multiple routes of transmission and helping improve screening and infection-control protocols.
In recent years, fungi have earned a spot on the world’s watch list of deadly pathogens. In 2022, the World Health Organization named its first-ever list of priority fungal threats, placing the yeast Candidozyma auris, formerly known as Candida auris, in the most serious category alongside just three other pathogens. It’s dangerous less for its virulence than for how hard it is to kill: it resists many antifungal drugs, survives for weeks on surfaces and spreads easily in healthcare settings.
First identified in 2009 in Tokyo, C. auris has since spread worldwide, posing a particular risk to nursing home residents and long-term care patients.
Read more about Inside a Drug-Resistant Fungal Cluster: Researchers Trace a Global Threat.
