Scynexis Inc. has announced that a novel series of antifungal compounds utilizing its proprietary triterpenoid antifungal platform are among five projects funded by a federal grant awarded to the new accelerator consortium led by researchers from Hackensack Meridian Center for Discovery and Innovation (CDI) and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Around the globe, fungal infections affect more than 1 billion people and account for several million deaths every year. They pose a particular problem in low- and middle-income countries, where antifungal drugs may be less available and, even if available, may prove ineffective because of fungal resistance. These considerations highlight the need for a next generation of antifungals.
Invasive fungal infections pose a significant global health challenge due to their severity and the scarcity of effective and safe treatment options. Unlike antibacterial drug development, creating new antifungals is especially challenging because fungal and human cells share a eukaryotic structure, highlighting the need for innovative treatment strategies.
Writing in Nature, researchers from China Pharmaceutical University and Shandong University have revealed the discovery of a new polyene antifungal antibiotic, mandimycin.
Mucormycosis, a fungal infection caused by fungi from the order Mucorales, can cause severe disease, especially in immunocompromised subjects. These fungi are ubiquitous and can be found in environmental sources such as crop residues and soil. Among the multiple factors that increase the risk of mucormycosis infection are immunosuppression and diabetes mellitus.
Mucormycosis, a fungal infection caused by fungi from the order Mucorales, can cause severe disease, especially in immunocompromised subjects. These fungi are ubiquitous and can be found in environmental sources such as crop residues and soil. Among the multiple factors that increase the risk of mucormycosis infection are immunosuppression and diabetes mellitus.
Azole derivatives have been used as antifungal drugs in clinical practice for many years. However, limitations such as drug-drug interactions, severe adverse events from prolonged use, and high resistance prevalence highlight the urgent need for new therapeutic options to treat the rising number of invasive fungal infections.
Researchers at Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Grenoble Alpes, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Université Grenoble Alpes and Université Libre de Bruxelles have synthesized calix[4]arene compounds reported to be useful for treatment of cancer, metastatic cancer, and bacterial, viral, fungal and parasitic infections.
Current approved antifungal therapies are limited by their associated adverse events. SCY-247 is a new triterpenoid antifungal for intravenous or oral administration that inhibits the glucan synthase enzyme, which is a key member for the fungal cell wall.
Researchers from Second Military Medical University PLA (Shanghai) and affiliated organizations announced the discovery and preclinical characterization of novel antifungal small-molecule candidates.
