Cryptococcus neoformans is one of four fungi classified as “critical priority” on the WHO’s Fungal Pathogens Priority List, which was published in October 2022 following decades of research and calls for fungal pathogens to be classified alongside their bacterial and viral counterparts.

The fungus infects people through inhalation of spores or yeast cells in the environment, first colonizing the lungs and can then spread to the brain. In 2020, an estimated 112,000 deaths were associated globally to fungal meningitis caused by C. neoformans.

Increasing evidence shows that co-infection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis, together with C. neoformans, is a grave public health concern, increasing the risk of death significantly compared to fungal infection alone.