The series The Last of Us has been renewed by HBO 2nd season. In the plot, the protagonists have to face the dreaded clickers, people infected by the Cordyceps fungus.
This type of fungus actually exists in real life and can be found in Brazilian rainforests. It attacks the nervous system of insects and turns them into its hosts. Cordyceps could help treat cancer in the future, according to a study conducted by Chungbuk National University and published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology (via: AH).
teaching team Mi Kyeong Lee began to cultivate them under controlled conditions and discovered that they could develop therapeutic activities through a substance called cordycepin.
It helps in antiproliferation and also antimetastasis of cancer cells. In addition, Lee points out that the mushroom can also be used for antiviral treatments.
“In addition, recent research strongly recommends preclinical and clinical trials of cordycepin for the comprehensive treatment of Covid19,” said the professor.
Contrary to what is shown in the series, in the future Cordyceps could become a great ally of medicine against one of the diseases that has affected people the most in recent years.