Whenever you’re out exploring nature, you’ll be sure to spot a fungus. But it’s become more common to see fungi playing a role in our day to day lives too.

Fungi are rapidly becoming key players in helping humanity combat pollution and climate change, as well as a myriad of other problems. While you might already be familiar with fungi as meat replacements on your dinner plates, here we take a look at some of the other ways fungi could help save the world. Fungi have been helping save the world for years. A number of medicines commonly used today are fungus-based.

The antibiotic penicillin was famously discovered by Alexander Fleming when he found that a blue-green mould prevented the growth of infectious bacteria in one of his experiments Lovastatin, a cholesterol-lowering drug used to help combat heart disease, was first isolated from a soil-based fungus called Aspergillus terreus.

One of the lesser-known fungal-based medicines is an immunosuppressant called ciclosporin. It’s used to help increase the success of organ transplantation. This versatile drug was discovered in the fungus Tolypocladium inflatum, a mould that is commonly found in soil and leaf litter.

BY EDDIE JOHNSTON