'Zombie ant fungus' takes control of insects' bodies before consuming them

The fungus (Ophiocordyceps unilateralis sensu lato) causes the death of its host before scattering its pores to infect other ants.

Scientists have uncovered intriguing new details about a bizarre"zombie fungus" that manipulates the behavior of the carpenter ants it infects—with gruesome results.

For the study, Mangold and colleagues sought to find out how exactly the fungus is able to influence these muscles despite causing widespread muscle damage. The scientists took infected ants and froze them before studying their body structures with an electron microscope. "We were able to see that the host mandibular muscles appear to be in a state of forceful contraction at the time of biting," Mangold said."Additionally, we were able to see that the fungus physically penetrates host muscle cells. We also saw the presence of extracellular vesicle-like particles associated with fungal cells."

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