Naegleria fowleri

Naegleria fowleri is a free-living amoeba that can cause rare and deadly infection of the brain called primary amebic meningoecephalitis (PAM). This pathogen usually infects people when contaminated water enters the body via the nose. After it enters the nose, it travels to the brain, resulting in PAM. It is currently plaguing the US, moving northwards away from the southern states. The most vulnerable to this infection are those swimming or diving in warm freshwater places.