Much of the difference between the single-celled fungus and the two multicellular animals is accounted for by those genes and proteins that make multicellularity possible.
Dieback, caused by the Chalara fraxinea fungus, was first recorded in eastern Europe in 1992 and spread over two decades to infect most of the continent.
New studies show that a specific type of fungus native to East Africa can infect mosquitoes and reduce their lifespan by two-thirds - to just seven days.