Recalled Yogurt Tied to Fungus Infections, Study Finds

A fungus that triggered a yogurt recall last year poses a health risk to all consumers, according to a new study.

In September 2013, there were reports of illness among people who ate Chobani brand Greek yogurt, and the company issued a recall. The yogurt was found to be contaminated with a fungus called Murcor circinelloides.

"When people think about food-borne pathogens [germs], normally they list bacteria, viruses, and maybe parasites. Fungal pathogens are not considered as food-borne pathogens," Soo Chan Lee, of Duke University, said in a news release from the American Society for Microbiology.

"However, this incidence indicates that we need to pay more attention to fungi. Fungal pathogens can threaten our health systems as food-borne pathogens," Lee added.

At the time, it was believed that the fungus was only a health threat to people with weakened immune systems. However, there were many complaints about gastrointestinal illness from otherwise healthy people, prompting researchers to take a closer look at the fungus in the yogurt.

The investigators found that the strain of M. circinelloides that caused the outbreak of illness was one commonly associated with infections in people. The researchers tested the strain on mice and found that it could cause deadly infections in the rodents.

The findings were recently published in the online journal mBio.

More information

The U.S. National Library of Medicine has more about food-borne illness.