Newly Discovered Human-Cat Fungus Spreads
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Turning headline news into punchline gold. Five nights a week. The Last Show with David Cooper. A deadly, well, maybe not deadly, but a horrible infection is spreading from cats to humans. Beware. We are joined by Dr. Cliff Redford. It is vet talk. It is pet talk. And don't worry, I think it's only happening in Uruguay right now, or at least that's where, you know, scientists have found it.
What is the newly discovered fungus spreading from cats to humans?
But still, let's talk about Sporothrix brasiliensis and what you need to know about it. Bada bing, bada boom. Dr. Cliff is here. He's got a book coming out in September. Do you want to be plugging your book so far or not quite yet?
No, no, not yet. Not yet.
Just be aware that we will be plugging a book at some point.
We absolutely, that is the only reason why I'm here. Not because you don't like me.
Come on.
To build the relationship. No, I love this. I love this. Look, can we get out like the pun about this being a catastrophe right at the beginning? Wow.
How does Sporothrix brasiliensis affect cats and humans?
Pretty good. Pretty good. I'm a fun guy. Wow. Oh, wow. Double.
Cat fungus. You got the cat fungus puns up the wazoo. I don't even know what that means. Does wazoo mean rear end? That seems wrong. Cat fungus fever.
Yes, sporothrix brasiliensis or brasiliensis. You got very, very close. It is all throughout South America. It is a new... A new fungus? A brand new fungus? It is generally a brand new fungus. First seen 10 years ago. And it infects cats and other animals. and people, but in cats, it shows up as these nasty pustules and open sore lesions around their mouth, their nostrils, their face generally, their claws, like their paw pads. And what they did not realize, because when they first found it 10 years ago, 10 plus years ago, was it was just in this one section, the southeast coast of Uruguay. And there were the occasional person that would pick up these lesions as well. But in the last 10 years, all throughout South America, 10,000 people have been diagnosed with it now.
Can we cure this fungus with antifungal creams or pills or whatever?
Apparently, yes. Okay, good. Apparently, it's very, very easy to treat. But what sort of makes this pique the interest of scientists is they quickly realized that cats and people that were being diagnosed with it had no connection with another cat or a person that had it. So they were confused at how it could spread.
Can I guess? Can I guess? You can guess. Doesn't fungus have spores? Doesn't it spread in the air?
It can, but that's not what's happening with this one.
I was close, I was close.
This one is basically, they realized that it was so easily spread that when a cat had it, even if they didn't have a lot of lesions... If they bit or scratched or rubbed their face up against another animal or person, let's say, then this fungus would spread. And it was the stray cats, those darn dirty street cats that were constantly fighting. And I was rolling my eyes in sarcasm. uh constantly fighting and obviously in close proximity of one another uh uh living together and they were they just weren't respecting city boundaries and they were spreading it i saw this video on the internets of like this is related i swear of a cat owner who's like it's like my cat's coming home it was in japan this cat's an out like indoor outdoor cat
And the owner was saying, my cat's coming home. It's the sweetest cat in the world. He cuddles with me every night. Affectionate, like a dog. Just the sweetest little cat. And he was coming home with scratches and scars and bloody and horrible. So the guy bought like a collar cam for his cat being like, who is bullying my cat? And then he put the video up of a day in the life of his cat as he roamed the streets of this small Japanese town. And the cat was the jerk all along. The cat was going up to any stray, any cat it could find, and was picking a fight, meowing, scratching, not leaving cats minding their own business alone. So yeah, when cats are out in the streets, they get up to no good and they scratch each other.
They scratch each other. They bite each other. We've talked about it before.
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Chapters
5 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:01–0:25
2
What is the newly discovered fungus spreading from cats to humans?
0:25–0:58
3
How does Sporothrix brasiliensis affect cats and humans?
0:58–5:16
4
What are the symptoms of the cat fungus in pets?
5:16–7:49
5
How is the cat fungus spreading if there's no direct contact?
7:49–19:37
Speakers
3 identifiedMore from The Last Show with David Cooper
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