Abstract
The most enigmatic aspect of the rise of Candida auris as a human pathogen is that it emerged simultaneously on three continents, with each clade being genetically distinct. Although new pathogenic fungal species are described regularly, these are mostly species associated with single cases in individuals who are immunosuppressed. In this study, we used phylogenetic analysis to compare the temperature susceptibility of C. auris with those of its close relatives and to use these results to argue that it may be the first example of a new fungal disease emerging from climate change, with the caveat that many other factors may have contributed.
Highlights
Candida auris is a new drug-resistant fungal species that was first isolated in 2009 from a human ear and named “auris” [1]
Whereas selection by environmental azole use can certainly have contributed to drug resistance in this fungal species, it does not explain why this organism suddenly became a human pathogen on three continents
The acquisition of drug resistance alone is very unlikely to confer upon a microbe the capacity for pathogenicity, since reduced susceptibility to drugs and virulence are very different properties, as evidenced by frequent fitness costs associated with mutations conferring resistance to antifungals to Candida [4, 5]
Summary
Candida auris is a new drug-resistant fungal species that was first isolated in 2009 from a human ear and named “auris” [1]. Whereas selection by environmental azole use can certainly have contributed to drug resistance in this fungal species, it does not explain why this organism suddenly became a human pathogen on three continents.
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