Abstract
Humans inhale, ingest and touch thousands of fungi each day. The
ubiquity and diversity of the fungal kingdom are in sharp contrast with
their complex and relatively blurred taxonomy and scarce knowledge about
their distribution, pathogenic effects, and effective interventions at
the environmental and individual levels. Here, we present an overview of
salient features of fungi as permanent players of the human exposome and
key determinants of human health. Improved understanding of the fungal
exposome sheds new light on the epidemiology of fungal-related diseases,
their immunological substratum, the currently available methods, and
biomarkers for environmental and medical fungi. Unmet needs are
described and potential approaches are highlighted as perspectives.