Abafungin (
INN) is a broad-spectrum
antifungal agent
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 crypto ...
with a novel mechanism of action for the treatment of
dermatomycoses
Fungal infection, also known as mycosis, is disease caused by fungi. Different types are traditionally divided according to the part of the body affected; superficial, subcutaneous, and systemic. Superficial fungal infections include common t ...
.
Abasol is a
topical cream formulation of abafungin by
York Pharma.
History
Abafungin was first synthesized at
Bayer AG, Leverkusen, Germany. A study of
H2-antagonists related to
famotidine, resulted in the discovery of its antifungal properties.
Its development seems to have been discontinued in 2009.
Mechanism of action
Unlike
imidazole- and
triazole
A triazole is a heterocyclic compound featuring a five-membered ring of two carbon atoms and three nitrogen atoms with molecular formula C2H3N3. Triazoles exhibit substantial isomerism, depending on the positioning of the nitrogen atoms within th ...
-class antifungals, abafungin directly impairs the fungal cell membrane.
In addition, abafungin inhibits the enzyme
sterol 24-C-methyltransferase
In enzymology, a sterol 24-C-methyltransferase () is an enzyme that catalyzes the chemical reaction
:S-adenosyl-L-methionine + 5alpha-cholesta-8,24-dien-3beta-ol \rightleftharpoons S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine + 24-methylene-5alpha-cholest-8-en-3b ...
, modifying the composition of the fungal membrane.
Abafungin has antibiotic activity against
gram-positive bacteria
In bacteriology, gram-positive bacteria are bacteria that give a positive result in the Gram stain test, which is traditionally used to quickly classify bacteria into two broad categories according to their type of cell wall.
Gram-positive bact ...
as well as
sporicidal activity.
References
External links
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Antifungals
Thiazoles
Diphenyl ethers
Pyrimidines
{{antimicrobial-stub