60秒科学:Less Fungus among Us Warm-Blooded

Less Fungus¹ among Us Warm-Blooded
A study in the Journal of Infectious Diseases finds that one major advantage of being warm-blooded is that the great majority of fungi² cannot infect us. Karen Hopkin reports

Some people eat to avoid being bored. Others to avoid doing something they’d rather not, like preparing a podcast. Now a report says we might eat to avoid fungi. Because warm-bloodedness, a condition that requires a lot of calories, may have evolved to keep fungal infections at bay.

There are obvious benefits to being warm blooded. Like not having to sit in the sun for a few hours just to get going in the morning. Another, less obvious plus, is the fact that we tend not to get attacked by fungi. Of the one-and-a-half million fungal species on Earth, only a few hundred are capable of infecting mammals. Compare that to a quarter of a million fungi that target plants, and 50,000 species that infect insects. So what makes us mammals relatively³ fungus-free? It seems to be our hot bodies.

Scientists measured how well 4,000 different fungi fared at different temperatures. They found that nearly all grow well up to about 86 degrees. Beyond that, the survivors⁴ drop by six percent for each extra degree. The study appears in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. Bottom line: if you can’t stand the fungus, get back in the kitchen.

—Karen Hopkin
 

1 fungus   

n.真菌，真菌类植物

参考例句：

• Mushrooms are a type of fungus.蘑菇是一种真菌。
• This fungus can just be detected by the unaided eye.这种真菌只用肉眼就能检查出。

2 fungi   

n.真菌，霉菌

参考例句：

• Students practice to apply the study of genetics to multicellular plants and fungi.学生们练习把基因学应用到多细胞植物和真菌中。
• The lawn was covered with fungi.草地上到处都是蘑菇。

3 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

4 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者