An attempt to present the theory of "Summit Disease"
or that
"ants"
infected
with "Cordyceps" (Cordyceps)
"behave strangely"
at the end of their lives.
Staggers and tries to climb up to a higher place, such as a branch or leaf stalk of a tree, so that the spores on the stalk of the fungus grow out of the ant carcass.
have a chance to spread to other ants
by higher winds
which will be more effective than spreading on the ground
This behavior may be a factor from the active ingredients produced by
Cordyceps fungus,
which was later taken by the creators
of
The Last of Us game.
How likely is the "zombie threat from mold causing the world to collapse"
?
What is Cordyceps Fungus?
And do ants really have strange behavior from this kind of fungi?
"Thairath Online News Team"
will take everyone to meet Thailand's ant experts.
to try to find the answer to this
“Let's just say it is easy to understand. like this Cordyceps fungus when entering the ant's body Will cause the ants to become sick and eventually die of disease, ”
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Decha Wiwat Wittaya, Department of Forest Biology, Faculty of Forestry, Kasetsart University.
which is an expert in ants of Thailand
Start lectures with
"Thai Rath Online News Special Team"
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Decha Wiwatwithaya, Department of Forest Biology, Faculty of Forestry, Kasetsart University
which is an expert in ants of Thailand
What is Cordyceps Fungus? :
“It's a group of fungi.
But there is a special effect when entering the body of various insects.
One of which is some kind of ants.
will cause disease until the insect dies
In addition, there will be stalks and
spores (Spore)
coming out of the body of insects to reproduce further as well.
Fungi in the genus
Codyceps
,
Hypocrella
and
Torrubiella
were found to be specific to pathogenic insects.
Codyceps
is a genus of about 400 species of fungi found worldwide. In Thailand,
Codyceps
genus has been reported. Up to 80 species by this genus is in the family.
Clavicipitaceae
and found to cause disease in ants, bees, wasps, wasps, spiders, aphids, beetles, dragonflies, butterflies and caterpillars, etc.
**
Note
: Insect Pathogenic Fungi
are fungi that rely on host insects to grow and use host insects as a food source until the host insect dies.
Fungi reproduce by forming spores and spreading to new hosts.
And although this group of fungi cause disease in insects.
but in the ecology
The pathogenic fungi in this insect are very useful in controlling their numbers.
and insect populations in nature to be in balance**
Cordyceps fungi and ants:
“According to the study of ants for a long time, ants are amazing creatures to some extent. because if we observe carefully Before the ant enters the nest, it has the behavior of turning to the left. turn to the right rub the mustache on the head Rub the middle pair of back legs to remove the germs from the body before entering the nest. In addition, at the third segment of the ant's chest, there will be antibodies to kill germs as well.
For this reason, Cordyceps infection in ants
Most are caused by contact, such as walking and touching cordyceps spores on the ground and plant remains.
or eat insects or animals that carry spores
When this type of fungus enters the body of the ant.
It enters life as a parasite, eating its internal organs and gradually
grow up
Until the stem and
spores (Spore)
come out of the ant's body.
and make the ant gradually
ill eventually die
Behavior of ants when infected with Cordyceps fungi :
“Imagine it simply as if people were infected with the virus. And cause sickness, it will have strange symptoms, and even if ... all ants infected with Cordyceps die. But that doesn't mean Ants will die in the nest. Because it's going to look like 100 ants, maybe 5 or 10 die, and that's it.
Ants when infected with Cordyceps fungi
easy to notice
It will gradually absorb, not quite active like normal ants.
Then it will stop doing its job.
and separated from the nest
But the strange thing is
Ants will not die in their nest.
because it is afraid that it will infect other people in the nest
So it split off to die alone outside the nest.
By going out to cling to the branches or under the leaves and die in the state of clinging to the branches.
or under a leaf until it freezes and dries to death
For this reason, the search for ants that died from cordycep infection
So it's not in the nest.
But will find on the branches or under the leaves in the moist evergreen forest where the temperature is suitable for the growth of fungi.
And it certainly wasn't that easy to find each other.
You have to be a true entomologist to find one.
Cordyceps fungi = zombie ants
For the case where the "Summit Disease"
theory has been proposed
or that ants infected with Cordyceps fungi
"Perform strange behavior"
by striving to climb towards the end of life.
This is different from the general population of ants that tend to walk or crawl on the ground.
which may be a result of the active ingredient produced by Cordyceps fungi,
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Decha commented to the Thairath Online Task Force that....
“If you ask me then why do ants have to cling to the branches or high leaves? Then dry and die like that Or that is because it is caused by the influence of Cordyceps fungi. I wouldn't be able to answer. But according to my understanding, it seems to be because Ants suffer more from sickness. Because although it is an interesting research point of view and there is still little study by until now has not yet been discovered Which substance or group of substances acts to control the behavior of ants?
Cordyceps spores after ant death:
When the ant dies, cordyceps spores emerge from the stalk, which emerge from the ant's body.
will continue to be blown away by the air
Which ant was born to touch
Or eat the remains of insects or animals infected with this spores.
will continue to infect each other, but this infection phenomenon
It doesn't happen easily.
Because otherwise we would have noticed more ants dying from infection.
“I myself am an expert on ants. I've never seen an ant that died of cordycep infection. Even after trying to walk into the forest many times Most of the time, people who find them must have a good eye and know where the ants that die from these fungi are usually in order to find them.”
Ants in Thailand who are at risk for cordyceps infection:
“There are hundreds of ants in Thailand.
But the group is at risk of being infected with Cordyceps fungi.
There are only about 3 genera:
1.Camponotus 2.Polyrhachis 3.Paratrechina
This may be partly because these ant genus like to live in the remains of plants on the ground and there are also a lot of them.
Therefore, the chances of exposure to fungal spores are very high as well.
Cordyceps fungus with pathogenicity in humans:
“Unlikely...because as far as cordyceps have been reported so far, will only cause disease in insects and has never been found to cause any disease in humans.”
The relationship between Cordyceps fungi and humans :
"Changge for rent, what's up! That's the Cordyceps fungus. that we eat together today.”
Cordyceps
, which is used as a medicine in ancient Chinese medicine, is a cordyceps fungus, but it grows in the moth caterpillars that are buried underground.
When the fungus matures, it rises above the soil and takes on a rod shape.
The caterpillars that are fed on for nutrients will die and become carcasses attached to the fungal stalks. However, the
cordyceps
that are used to make health tonics must be collected from natural sources in the Tibetan Plateau.
which has a height of more than 3,500 meters above sea level
** Note:
When insects get spores from Cordyceps fungi
The spores produce a
lipolytic
substance that interacts with the lipids on the host insect's body surface and induces spore germination.
After that, mycelium
begins to form
and produces chitin enzymes to break down the chitin on the host insect's surface, creating gaps.
The filaments form a
germ tube
that penetrates the host insect's skin.
The fibers then branch through the adipose tissue layer of muscle.
and spread over the body of the insect
and use host insects as food sources for growth
And when the fibers become more compact,
Stromata
will be created to pass through the body of the host insects to be used for further reproduction.
During this growth
Fungi produce both
primary metabolites and secondary metabolites
for their sustenance.
which some of the secondary metabolites produced by Cordyceps fungi
Found that it is an interesting bioactive substance, for example,
Cordyceps Militaris
produces
Cordycepin
, which inhibits the growth and proliferation of cancer cells, as well as anti-inflammatory, or Cordyceps Sinensis
, or currently renamed Cordyceps Sinensis.
Ophiocordyceps Sinensis
which is well known as
"Cordyceps"
which has been used as a herb in Chinese medicine from past to present **
Thai Rath online news team reported
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