Despite the introduction of new antifungal agents, resistances to antifungal therapy continue to increase and outcome of invasive fungal infections treatment is frequently suboptimal. A large amount of the recent effort in antifungal drug discovery has focused on a limited set of targets with functions known or expected to be important for fungal viability and virulence. A variety of techniques...

Antifungal susceptibility tests are performed on fungi that cause disease, especially if they belong to a species exhibiting resistance to commonly used antifungal agents. Antifungal susceptibility testing is also important for resistance surveillance, for epidemiological studies and for comparing the in-vitro activity of new and existing agents. Dilution methods are used to establish the MICs ...

In recipients of hematopoietic stem cell transplants (HSCTs), the mortality associated with invasive fungal infections (IFIs) remains high, despite the introduction of broad-spectrum antifungal agents over the past 2 decades. Preventing exposure to fungal pathogens in this population is impossible; therefore, clinicians have focused on prophylactic use of antifungal agents to prevent IFIs in hi...

BACKGROUND The rise of opportunistic fungal infections highlights the need for development of new antimicrobial agents. Antimicrobial Peptides (AMPs) and Antifungal Peptides (AFPs) are among the agents with minimal resistance being developed against them, therefore they can be used as structural templates for design of new antimicrobial agents. METHODS In the present study four antifungal pep...

Invasive fungal infections with high mortality rate are a growing health concern in hospitals and medical centers. The infection usually occurs in people with compromised immune systems. The purpose of this paper is a review of the most commonly prescribed antifungal drugs for invasive fungal diseases. Antifungals consist of the four main groups; polyenes, azoles, echinocandins and DNA an...

This review provides a historical overview of the analog based drug discovery of miconazole and its congeners, and is focused on marketed azole antifungals bearing the generic suffix "conazole". The antifungal activity of miconazole, one of the first broad-spectrum antimycotic agents has been mainly restricted to topical applications. The attractive in vitro antifungal spectrum was a starting p...

Pulmonary infections caused by Aspergillus species are associated with significant morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. Although the treatment of pulmonary fungal infections requires the use of systemic agents, aerosolized delivery is an attractive option in prevention because the drug can concentrate locally at the site of infection with minimal systemic exposure. Current cli...

Vulvovaginal candidiasis is a common problem; at one time or another most women experience at least one episode of this bothersome condition. For the past several years, the pharmaceutical industry has convinced women that this condition is easily treated and that they should recognize the symptoms of vulvovaginal candidiasis. Thus women have had access to a variety of intravaginal antifungal a...

Amorolfine 5% and ciclopirox 8% nail lacquers are commonly used in topical treatment of onychomycosis. These formulations may be used alone or in combination with oral antifungal agents. Amorolfine and ciclopirox are valuable therapeutic options, however, their usage in monotherapy should be limited. Proper amorolfine and ciclopirox penetration through the nail plate is provided by transungual ...

OBJECTIVE To report a case of Aspergillus flavus malignant otitis externa, successfully treated with antifungal agents, surgical debridement, and hyperbaric oxygen treatment. PATIENT The case was a 77-year-old man with non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, who presented with otalgia and purulent otorrhea. Intervention was with surgical debridement, antifungal agents, and hyperbaric oxygen ...