While fungi play a crucial role in the environment and food web, medicine, food production, environmental cleanup, research and industry, biotechnology and agriculture, some species of fungi can pose serious health risks. There’s a reason you’re not supposed to eat any random mushroom you find growing in a forest!
Enter Coccidioidomycosis (say that five times fast). Also known as Valley Fever, coccidioidomycosis is a lung infection with symptoms that include fever, cough, fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pain, joint and muscle pain, and skin rashes. Though you may not have yet heard of it, cases of Valley Fever have been on the rise since the early 2000s, and in the last year, the state of Arizona has experienced an uptick of nearly 4,000 cases.
Valley Fever is caused by breathing in spores of the fungi Coccidioides immitis and Coccidioides posadasii, which are most often found in the Pacific Northwest and southwestern United States, as well as parts of Mexico, Central America, and South America. The name “Valley Fever” was coined due to its discovery in the San Joaquin Valley in California. However, according to the CDC, changing environmental conditions may lead to changes in the geographical distribution of Valley Fever-causing fungi.
Because Coccidioidomycosis is more prevalent in specific geographic areas, delays in diagnosis or a misdiagnosis is common in places where the fungus and illness are not as commonplace. These delays and misdiagnoses can lead to exacerbation of symptoms, including disseminated Valley Fever, which is caused when the disease spreads to other parts of the body, including the brain, joints, bone, skin, or other organs. In extreme cases, Valley Fever can result in symptoms that last years, or even death.
Education about diseases such as Valley Fever is one of our best defenses – as informed patients are more likely to advocate for themselves when their medical providers may not be as inclined to test for geographically uncommon diseases.
The Fungus Among Us Valley Fever MiniLab is a great first introduction to fungal diseases. In this hands-on MiniLab, students learn about the role of fungi in nature, signs and symptoms of Valley Fever, and how certain groups of people are genetically predisposed to getting extremely ill from Valley Fever. Serving on a Valley Fever “surveillance team”, they’ll test samples from various regions, using gel electrophoresis to test samples and identify fungus hot spots.
It’s an engaging real-world lab experience for students in biomedical science, genetics, anatomy and physiology courses. Click here to learn more about this new hands-on MiniLab from MiniOne, and visit the CDC’s website for in depth information on Coccidiomycosis.
