An antifungal medication, also known as an antimycotic medication, is a pharmaceutical fungicide or fungistatic used to treat and prevent mycosis such as athlete's foot, ringworm, candidiasis (thrush), serious systemic infections such as cryptococcal meningitis, and others. Such drugs are usually obtained by a doctor's prescription, but a few are available over the counter (OTC). The evolution of antifungal resistance is a growing threat to health globally.
Itraconazole, sometimes abbreviated ITZ, is an antifungal medication used to treat a number of fungal infections. This includes aspergillosis, blastomycosis, coccidioidomycosis, histoplasmosis, and paracoccidioidomycosis. It may be given by mouth or intravenously.
Simvastatin, sold under the brand name Zocor among others, is a statin, a type of lipid-lowering medication. It is used along with exercise, diet, and weight loss to decrease elevated lipid levels. It is also used to decrease the risk of heart problems in those at high risk. It is taken by mouth.
Ketoconazole, sold under the brand name Nizoral among others, is an antiandrogen, antifungal, and antiglucocorticoid medication used to treat a number of fungal infections. Applied to the skin it is used for fungal skin infections such as tinea, cutaneous candidiasis, pityriasis versicolor, dandruff, and seborrheic dermatitis. Taken by mouth it is a less preferred option and only recommended for severe infections when other agents cannot be used. Other uses include treatment of excessive male-patterned hair growth in women and Cushing's syndrome.
Fluconazole is an antifungal medication used for a number of fungal infections. This includes candidiasis, blastomycosis, coccidioidomycosis, cryptococcosis, histoplasmosis, dermatophytosis, and tinea versicolor. It is also used to prevent candidiasis in those who are at high risk such as following organ transplantation, low birth weight babies, and those with low blood neutrophil counts. It is given either by mouth or by injection into a vein.
Coccidioides immitis is a pathogenic fungus that resides in the soil in certain parts of the southwestern United States, northern Mexico, and a few other areas in the Western Hemisphere.
Caspofungin is a lipopeptide antifungal drug from Merck & Co., Inc. discovered by James Balkovec, Regina Black and Frances A. Bouffard. It is a member of a new class of antifungals termed the echinocandins. It works by inhibiting the enzyme (1→3)-β-D-glucan synthase and thereby disturbing the integrity of the fungal cell wall. Caspofungin was the first inhibitor of fungal (1→3)-β-D-glucan synthesis to be approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration. Caspofungin is administered intravenously.
Terconazole is an antifungal drug used to treat vaginal yeast infection. It comes as a lotion or a suppository and disrupts the biosynthesis of fats in a yeast cell. It has a relatively broad spectrum compared to azole compounds but not triazole compounds. Testing shows that it is a suitable compound for prophylaxis for those that suffer from chronic vulvovaginal candidiasis.
Anidulafungin (INN) is a semisynthetic echinocandin used as an antifungal drug. It was previously known as LY303366. It may also have application in treating invasive Aspergillus infection when used in combination with voriconazole. It is a member of the class of antifungal drugs known as the echinocandins; its mechanism of action is by inhibition of (1→3)-β-D-glucan synthase, an enzyme important to the synthesis of the fungal cell wall.
Aspergillosis is a fungal infection of usually the lungs, caused by the genus Aspergillus, a common mould that is breathed in frequently from the air, but does not usually affect most people. It generally occurs in people with lung diseases such as asthma, cystic fibrosis or tuberculosis, or those who are immunocompromized such as those who have had a stem cell or organ transplant or those who take medications such as steroids and some cancer treatments which suppress the immune system. Rarely, it can affect skin.
Echinocandins are a class of antifungal drugs that inhibit the synthesis of β-glucan in the fungal cell wall via noncompetitive inhibition of the enzyme 1,3-β glucan synthase. The class has been termed the "penicillin of antifungals," along with the related papulacandins, as their mechanism of action resembles that of penicillin in bacteria. β-glucans are carbohydrate polymers that are cross-linked with other fungal cell wall components, the fungal equivalent to bacterial peptidoglycan. Caspofungin, micafungin, and anidulafungin are semisynthetic echinocandin derivatives with limited clinical use due to their solubility, antifungal spectrum, and pharmacokinetic properties.
Micafungin, sold under the brand name Mycamine, is an echinocandin antifungal medication used to treat and prevent invasive fungal infections including candidemia, abscesses, and esophageal candidiasis. It inhibits the production of beta-1,3-glucan, an essential component of fungal cell walls that is not found in mammals.
In enzymology, a sterol 14-demethylase (EC 1.14.13.70) is an enzyme of the Cytochrome P450 (CYP) superfamily. It is any member of the CYP51 family. It catalyzes a chemical reaction such as:
Isavuconazonium sulfate, sold under the brand name Cresemba, is a systemic antifungal medication of the triazole class which is used to treat invasive aspergillosis and mucormycosis.
Ravuconazole is a potent triazole antifungal, the development of which was discontinued in 2007. The drug has shown to have a similar spectrum of activity to voriconazole, with an increased half-life. However, ravuconazole has limited activity against species of Fusarium, Scedosporium, and Zygomycetes.
Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis is a long-term fungal infection caused by members of the genus Aspergillus—most commonly Aspergillusfumigatus. The term describes several disease presentations with considerable overlap, ranging from an aspergilloma—a clump of Aspergillus mold in the lungs—through to a subacute, invasive form known as chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis which affects people whose immune system is weakened. Many people affected by chronic pulmonary aspergillosis have an underlying lung disease, most commonly tuberculosis, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, asthma, or lung cancer.
Levoketoconazole, sold under the brand name Recorlev, is a steroidogenesis inhibitor that is used for the treatment of Cushing's syndrome. Levoketoconazole was approved for medical use in the United States in December 2021.
Ibrexafungerp, sold under the brand name Brexafemme, is an antifungal medication used to treat vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC). It is taken orally. It is also currently undergoing clinical trials for other indications via an intravenous (IV) formulation. An estimated 75% of women will have at least one episode of VVC and 40 to 45% will have two or more episodes in their lifetime.
Topical antifungaldrugs are used to treat fungal infections on the skin, scalp, nails, vagina or inside the mouth. These medications come as creams, gels, lotions, ointments, powders, shampoos, tinctures and sprays. Most antifungal drugs induce fungal cell death by destroying the cell wall of the fungus. These drugs inhibit the production of ergosterol, which is a fundamental component of the fungal cell membrane and wall.
Oteseconazole, a novel orally bioavailable and selective inhibitor of fungal cytochrome P450 enzyme 51 (CYP51), has shown promising efficacy in the treatment of recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVVC) in patients.
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