the fungus of The Last of Us is he Cordyceps. That’s what they call it in the series and the video game and that’s what it’s called in real life, although both have big differences. For starters, the real Cordyceps it doesn’t infect humans, but that’s another matter we’ve already talked about. In this case, what is striking is that neither the images in the credits nor the appearance of the infected are based on Cordycepsbut in the slime mold (Physarum polycephalum).
But the most curious thing is that, despite being the visible image of a pandemic caused by fungi, slime mold is not a fungus. In fact, it could be said that it is in no man’s land, as far as rankings are concerned. But a fungus, as defined, is not.
He has commented on it in an article for The Conversation Mcquarie University researcher Chris R Reid. In it he talks about this difficulty in classifying the false fungus of The Last of Us, but also about some very interesting curiosities about him. For example, his ability to learn.
the fungus of The Last of Us it’s not a fungus
The first thing that differentiates Cordycepsthe true fungus of The Last of Usof the slime mold is that the first belongs to the kingdom fungi and the second to the protists. Actually, the kingdom of protists is a kind of mixed bag, which includes all eukaryotic organisms (with their DNA contained in a nucleus) that are not no animals, no plants, no fungi.
It should be said that, after the discovery of slime mold, it was thought that it was either an animal or a plant or a fungus, but everything has been discarded. It is also known as many headed mold, precisely because they have the ability to form networks, with many heads communicating with each other. Like those infected with The Last of Uswho can flock when one of them is in danger.
Also, just like fungi, they produce structures that help propagate their spores. This closely resembles the fungus of The Last of Usbut so does his appearance, like some kind of flower compositioncomposed of small yellowish vesicles. The drawings they make on the ground are very similar to those seen in the series intro and the appearance of the infected in their later stages of evolution has a lot to do with that of the slime mold when we see it up close. Especially when they are anchored to the wall.
He is intelligent and does well in mazes.
Slime mold, also known as “the blob” either “the drop” made headlines years ago for his ability to learn. It was observed that if she enters a maze, as it expands along a path, she leaves a trail of mucus, which helps her to know where she has already been and to find the exit sooner.
In fact, they are so efficient in this sense that some scientists are already taking inspiration from them for theto construction of trains and new telecommunications networks.
It is possible to say that they do not have brains, but they do use chemistry, for that and also to detect substances that indicate the presence of a food source. In addition, it has been seen that if several food sources are placed, it is in charge of covering them all with the greatest amount of body possible, without dividing into several pieces.
Almost as terrifying as the fungus of The Last of Us
In reality, and despite its innocent appearance, slime mold could be a nightmare for the fungus of The Last of Us. This is because it is a predator of microorganisms such as bacteria or fungi themselves. Therefore, it is a good study subject, not only for the development of telecommunications networks. Also as an antimicrobial.
In short, although the visible part of the fungus of The Last of Us is not a real fungus, it does have some factors in common with them. And it is no less terrifying than the one in real life. Also, as if all these peculiarities were not enough, it has up to 720 different sexes. That is, there are 720 different conformations between which genes can be transferred from a donor cell to a recipient cell. It’s not Cordycepsbut deserves a little hole in the series.