Abafungin (

INN Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...

) is a broad-spectrum antifungal agent with a novel mechanism of action for the treatment of dermatomycoses. Abasol is a

topical cream formulation Topical cream formulation is an emulsion semisolid dosage form that is used for skin external application. Most of the topical cream formulations contain more than 20 per cent of water and volatiles and/or less than 50 per cent of hydrocarbons, wa ...

of abafungin by York Pharma.

History

Abafungin was first synthesized at

Bayer AG Bayer AG (, commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer's areas of business include pharmaceutica ...

, Leverkusen, Germany. A study of H₂-antagonists related to

famotidine Famotidine, sold under the brand name Pepcid among others, is a histamine H2 receptor antagonist medication that decreases stomach acid production. It is used to treat peptic ulcer disease, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and Zollinger-Elli ...

, resulted in the discovery of its antifungal properties. Its development seems to have been discontinued in 2009.

Mechanism of action

Unlike

imidazole Imidazole (ImH) is an organic compound with the formula C3N2H4. It is a white or colourless solid that is soluble in water, producing a mildly alkaline solution. In chemistry, it is an aromatic heterocycle, classified as a diazole, and has non-a ...

- 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 t ...

-class antifungals, abafungin directly impairs the fungal cell membrane. In addition, abafungin inhibits the enzyme sterol 24-C-methyltransferase, modifying the composition of the fungal membrane. Abafungin has antibiotic activity against gram-positive bacteria as well as sporicidal activity.

References

External links

* Antifungals Thiazoles Diphenyl ethers Pyrimidines {{antimicrobial-stub