Jakarta, CNNIIndonesia —

The last of usone of today’s popular series, infection reveals mold Cordyceps can turn humans into zombies. Is it correct?

The series, which airs on HBO, stars Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as the two main characters, Joel and Ellie.

This story is based on Sony’s video game of the same title. Planet Earth is said to have been hit by a pandemic caused by Cordyceps fungal infection.

Not just any pandemic. Fungus turns positive infected patients into zombie-like creatures with levels skills different i.e. runners, stalkers, clickers, puffies, shamblers, to the rat king.

Joel is tasked with rescuing Ellie who seems immune or not to the infection. Ellie is also seen as humanity’s hope to develop a vaccine and end this mushroom pandemic nightmare.

Although the series is fictional, the cordyceps mushroom actually exists. In a review titled Cordyceps spp. : A review of its immune-boosting and other biological potentialsexperts actually reveal the benefits of this mushroom.

The name Cordyceps comes from the Greek “kordyle” which means club and from the Latin “ceps” which means head. This fungus “infects” other creatures, especially arthropod insects and other fungi.

They can evade the host’s immune system by harmonizing the host’s life cycle with survival and multiplication intentions.

Cordyceps grows and reproduces depending on the host plant. Their life cycle is divided into three phases.

In the first phase, Cordycseps spp. infects plants in the larval stage through ascospores. It is released into the air by mature mushrooms during summer and early fall and by sprouts.

In some cases, infection with Cordyceps spp. occurs through ingestion of contaminated food. In addition, during the parasitism phase, Cordyceps spp. eat from the intestines of its host.

The fungal cells then spread throughout the body and multiply rapidly during the winter. In this way, they consume all the internal organs of the larva, leaving the exoskeleton intact.

During this process, the environmental conditions are bad, and the fungus must withstand snow and cold.

When spring begins and the outside temperature rises, the endosclerotium germinates and extrudes through the host’s oral cavity, matures in summer, forms fruiting bodies and begins to release ascospores (saprophytic stage).

Cordyceps spp are usually found at an altitude of 3600 to 4000 meters above sea level. They can also be found in North America, Europe, Asia, especially in countries like China, Japan, Nepal, Bhutan, Vietnam, Korea and Thailand.

In India, Cordyceps spp grows in regions such as Kumaun Himalayas and Garhwal Himalayas. Additionally, the Cordyceps C. gunni species is also found in Australia.

So the medicine

Citing articles on the site MDPI, use of Cordyceps spp. as a medicine has a long tradition in Asia due to its adaptogenic tonic effect and ability to reduce fatigue and stimulate the human immune system.

Those using Cordyceps spp. are people in China, Tibet, Nepal and India.

People in the region usually consume Cordyceps spp when tending herds. Among Cordcyeps spp. which are often used as medicines are C. Sinensis and C. Militaris.

Communities in the region use Cordyceps spp. over the centuries to adapt their bodies to the extreme conditions of the mountains.

In addition, traditional Chinese medicine also recommends the use of Cordyceps spp to treat several disorders in humans such as cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, kidney and liver disorders, cancer, diabetes, infectious and parasitic diseases and sexual dysfunctions.

Due to these benefits, experts have looked at the content of C. militaris and C. sinensis. It is known that C. militaris has more content than C. sinensis.

C. Militaris, among others, has high levels of nucleosides, polysaccharides, carotenoids, and organic selenium. For this reason, C. militaris has more advantages than C. sinensis.

“Scientific studies show that there are more diverse biological activities in C. militaris than in C. sinensis. C. militaris has been shown to exert the following activities: ergogenic, immunostimulant, antitumor, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral , and hypolyemic,” wrote the experts in the article titled Cordyceps militaris: an overview of its chemical constituents in relation to biological activity.