- Cordyceps unilateralis
Taxobox
name = "Cordyceps unilateralis"
image_width =
image_caption =
regnum = Fungi
phylum =Ascomycota
classis =Sordariomycetes
ordo =Hypocreales
familia =Clavicipitaceae
genus = "Cordyceps "
species = "C. unilateralis"
binomial = "Cordyceps unilateralis"
binomial_authority ="Cordyceps unilateralis" is a species of
entomopathogenic fungus that infects and alters the behavior ofant s in order to ensure the widespread distribution of itsspore s. The spores enter the body of the insect through itsspiracle s, where they begin to consume the non-vital soft tissues. When the fungus is ready to spore, itsmycelia enter the ant's brain and change how it perceivespheromone s, causing the insect to climb to the top of a plant and use itsmandible s to secure itself to the stem. The fungus then kills the ant, and thefruiting bodies of "C. unilateralis" grow from its head and explode, releasing the spores. This process takes 4 to 10 days. [cite web |url=http://neurophilosophy.wordpress.com/2006/11/20/brainwashed-by-a-parasite/|title=Neurophilosophy: Brainwashed by a parasite |accessdate=2008-07-02 |work= |publisher= |date=2006-11-20 ] The species produces red naphthoquinones that possesses anti-malarial activity. [cite journal |author=Wongsa P, Tasanatai K, Watts P, Hywel-Jones N |title=Isolation and in vitro cultivation of the insect pathogenic fungus Cordyceps unilateralis |journal=Mycol. Res. |volume=109 |issue=Pt 8 |pages=936–40 |year=2005 |month=Aug |pmid=16175796 |doi= |url=]References
External links
* http://beta.uniprot.org/taxonomy/268505
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/spl/hi/pop_ups/08/sci_nat_enl_1214820829/img/1.jpgAn image of an ant infected with the "Cordycep" fungus]
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