Previously Uncharacterized Variants, OCF-E–OCF-J, of the Antifungal Occidiofungin Produced by Burkholderia contaminans MS14

Abstract

The rise of multidrug resistant fungal infections highlights the need to identify and develop novel antifungal agents. Occidiofungin is a nonribosomally synthesized glycolipopeptide that has a unique mechanism of action, disrupting actin-mediated functions and inducing cellular apoptosis. Antifungal activity has been observed in vitro against various fungal species, including multidrug resistant Candida auris, and in vivo efficacy has been demonstrated in a murine vulvovaginal candidiasis model. Occidiofungin, a cyclic glycolipopeptide, is composed of eight amino acids and in previous studies, an asparagine residue was assigned at position 7 (ASN7). In this study, new structural variants of occidiofungin have been characterized which have aspartic acid (ASP7), glutamine (GLN7), or glutamic acid (GLU7) at position 7. The side chain of the ASP7 variant contains the only terminal carboxylic acid in the peptide and provides a useful site for selective chemical modifications. Analogues were synthesized at the ASP7 position and tested for antifungal activity. These analogues were shown to be more active as compared to the ASP7 variant against a panel of Candida species. The naturally occurring variants of occidiofungin with a side chain containing a carboxylic acid at the seventh amino acid position can be used to develop semisynthetic analogues with enhanced therapeutic properties.

Candida auris Updates: Outbreak Evaluation through Molecular Assays and Antifungal Stewardship—A Narrative Review

“…The antifungal resistance mechanisms identified were diverse: resistance to phagocytosis by macrophages, mutations that explain increased fluconazole and voriconazole resistance ( ERG11 and TAC1B genes), missense substitutions in FKS1 for echinocandin resistance, and the possibility of using the proton pump inhibitor lansoprazole to restore the activity of amphotericin B (AmB) in resistant isolates. Identifying with high precision the antifungal resistance mechanisms could lead to opportunities in the development of novel antifungal drugs against C. auris and could help in tracking the spread of Candida auris between cities and countries by highlighting the genetic relation between strains ( Table 2 ) [ 14 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 ].…”