Sign In
Learn bits
Science & Tech.
Mahesh

29/10/22 05:44 AM IST

WHO releases first-ever list of fungal infection, flags global

In News 
  • The World Health Organisation (WHO) has published a report highlighting the first-ever list of fungal "priority pathogens" – a catalogue of the 19 fungi that represent the greatest threat to public health.
About FPPL List 
  • The FPPL is the first global effort to systematically prioritize fungal pathogens, with consideration to the unmet research and development requirements and the perceived global public health importance.
  • It aims to boost research and policy interventions to strengthen the international response to fungal infection and antifungal resistance.
  • The WHO FPPL list is divided into three categories – critical, high, and medium priority.
  • The fungal pathogens in each priority category are ranked based on their impact on public health and/or emerging antifungal resistance risk. 
Three Categories
  • The critical group includes Candida auris, which is highly drug resistant and has caused a number of outbreaks in hospitals worldwide, as well as Cryptococcus neoformans, Aspergillus fumigatus, and Candida albicans.
  • The high group includes a number of other fungi from the Candida family as well as others such as Mucorales, a group containing the fungi that causes mucormycosis or "black fungus", an infection which rose rapidly in seriously ill people - particularly in India - during COVID-19.
  • The medium group lists a number of other fungi, including Coccidioides spp and Cryptococcus gattii.
A global threat 
  • Fungal pathogens are increasingly becoming a threat to public health as they are becoming more common and highly resistant to treatment.
  • Currently, only four classes of antifungal medicines are available, and very few new ones are currently being tested.
  • Rapid and sensitive diagnostic tools are absent for most of the fungal pathogens.
  • Invasive forms of fungal pathogens are severely affecting immunocompromised people like patients suffering from cancer, HIV/AIDS, chronic respiratory disease, and post-primary tuberculosis infection and organ transplant.
Source- Live Mint 

More Related Current Affairs View All

22 Aug

Uttarakhand State Authority for Minority Education (USAME) Bill, 2025

'The Uttarakhand Assembly on Wednesday passed the Minority Education Bill, 2025, extending minority status benefits to institutions run by the Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian, and

Read More

22 Aug

India needs a national space law urgently

'A nation with a strong base in science and technology is a nation with a strong backbone” — these words of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam ring truer than before as India celebrate

Read More

22 Aug

Organ transplantation

'The National Organ and Tissue Transplant Organisation (NOTTO) recently issued a direction stating that women patients and relatives of deceased donors will receive priority in org

Read More

India’s First Ai-Driven Magazine Generator

Generate Your Custom Current Affairs Magazine using our AI in just 3 steps