In the 1920s, a number of workers on the excavation team that uncovered King Tutankhamun’s tomb met untimely deaths. Five decades later, 10 out of 12 scientists died after entering the tomb of the 15th-century Polish King Casimir IV. In both cases, researchers suggested that fungal spores could have played a role in the mysterious […]
Unreal Amber Fossils Show ‘Last of Us’ Zombie Fungus Terrorizing Bugs During the Cretaceous
In the video game The Last of Us and its spin-off HBO series, humans fight to survive against cordyceps, a parasitic fungus that turns its hosts into zombies. While the infections are wildly dramatized in both the game and the show, these fungi aren’t mere science fiction. In fact, some species have been around since […]
This Unassuming Mushroom Packs the Bitterest Taste Ever Measured
Would you eat the forbidden fungi? Scientists have uncovered a mushroom-derived compound that seems to be the most bitter substance known on Earth. Researchers in Germany made the not-so-tasty find in a species of mushroom called Amaropostia stiptica—also aptly known as the bitter bracket fungus. The compound is one of three new bitter molecules discovered […]