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  • Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities

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As both antibiotic producers and deadly pathogens, necessary members of ecosystems and invasive species, understanding the complexity of the Fungal Kingdom demands a multidisciplinary approach. CIFAR’s team includes diverse experts who interrogate the unique facets of fungal biology to mitigate the threats posed by fungi and harness their extraordinary potential.

 

RESEARCH AND SOCIETAL IMPACT HIGHLIGHTS

Addressing global challenges and fundal threats

The program partnered with the Burroughs Wellcome Fund in November 2021 to hold a Future of Mycology Workshop. The meeting united program members with experts from industry and academia to identify priorities to global challenges and fungal threats. An engaged discussion culminated in the development of recommendations on connections between fungi and climate change; fungal threats to humans; fungal threats to food security; fungal threats to animals; and opportunities presented by the fungal kingdom.

A leap forward in antifungal discovery

Program Co-Directors Leah Cowen (University of Toronto) and Joseph Heitman (Duke University), along with Fellows Charles Boone (University of Toronto), Christina Cuomo (Broad Institute), and Gerard Wright (McMaster University) have launched a vibrant collaborative program that focuses on innovative strategies to address the urgent need for novel antifungals. Together, the team has screened powerful and diverse chemical libraries, including natural products and derivatives, to identify molecules that kill fungal pathogens or abrogate resistance to the leading antifungals used in the clinic. The team has leveraged structure-guided approaches to optimize potency and fungal selectivity of lead molecules and has developed deep learning approaches for antifungal discovery. In the past year, team members have published several papers with a transformative impact on thwarting antimicrobial resistance.

Improving health through fungal diagnostics

Program members explored opportunities to improve human health through a virtual multi-sector meeting convening almost 50 participants. The meeting included select industry guests as well as Fungal Diagnostics Laboratory Consortium members, who represent North America’s top-tier clinical laboratories conducting fungal diagnostics — including health agencies, universities and research hospitals as well as Canadian national and provincial labs (public health agencies of Canada, Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec). Together with program members, they explored shared challenges and opportunities in fungal diagnostics to identify the potential for new, multi-centre collaborations.

one health publication cover

This new report, One Health: Fungal Pathogens of Humans, Animals, and Plants, highlights the remarkable advances in the field and provides updated recommendations to address scientific and public health challenges today.

Program member authors: Arturo Casadevall, John W. Taylor, Joseph Heitman, and Leah Cowen

Founded

2019

Supporters

Burroughs Wellcome Fund

Interdisciplinary Collaboration

Molecular genetics
Microbiology
Epidemiology
Bioinformatics
Public Health
Biochemistry

CIFAR Contact

Daniel Bacinello

Fellows & Advisors

Program Directors

Leah E. Cowen

Leah E. Cowen

Program Co-Director

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Toronto
Canada
Joseph Heitman

Joseph Heitman

Program Co-Director

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Duke University
United States

Fellows

David S. Blehert

David S. Blehert

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
National Wildlife Health Center
U.S. Geological Survey
United States
Charles M. Boone

Charles M. Boone

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Genetic Networks
University of Toronto
Canada
Anuradha Chowdhary

Anuradha Chowdhary

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Delhi India
Vallabhbhai Patel Chest Institute
India
Christina A. Cuomo

Christina A. Cuomo

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Broad Institute
United States
Cameron Currie

Cameron Currie

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Wisconsin-Madison
United States
Matthew C. Fisher

Matthew C. Fisher

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Imperial College London
United Kingdom
Lillian Fritz-Laylin

Lillian Fritz-Laylin

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Massachusetts Amherst
United States
Sarah Jane Gurr

Sarah Jane Gurr

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Exeter
United Kingdom
Iliyan D. Iliev

Iliyan D. Iliev

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Cornell University
United States
Tim James

Tim James

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Michigan
United States
Hailing Jin

Hailing Jin

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of California Riverside
United States
Bruce Klein

Bruce Klein

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Wisconsin-Madison
United States
James Kronstad

James Kronstad

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of British Columbia
Canada
Julie Segre

Julie Segre

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
National Human Genome Research Institute
United States
Don Sheppard

Don Sheppard

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
McGill University
Canada
Jason E. Stajich

Jason E. Stajich

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of California Riverside
United States
Eva H. Stukenbrock

Eva H. Stukenbrock

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Christian-Albrechts University of Kiel
Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology
Germany
Gerard Wright

Gerard Wright

Fellow

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
McMaster University
Canada

Advisors

Arturo Casadevall

Arturo Casadevall

Advisory Committee Chair

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Johns Hopkins University
United States
David Denning

David Denning

Advisor

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Manchester
United Kingdom
Neil Gow

Neil Gow

Advisor

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Exeter
United Kingdom
Maria J. Harrison

Maria J. Harrison

Advisor

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Boyce Thompson Institute
United States
Regine Kahmann

Regine Kahmann

Advisor

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology
Germany
John Taylor

John Taylor

Advisor

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of California Berkeley
United States

CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholars

Iuliana V. Ene

Iuliana V. Ene

CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholars 2021-2023

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
Institut Pasteur
France
Aleeza Gerstein

Aleeza Gerstein

CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholars 2021-2023

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Manitoba
Canada
Rebecca Shapiro

Rebecca Shapiro

CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholars 2021-2023

Fungal Kingdom: Threats & Opportunities
University of Guelph
Canada

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