In recent years, fungal infections, including drug-resistant strains, have been on the rise due in part to climate change. Scientists have been searching for new antifungal drugs to combat these infections. A team of researchers in China has discovered a new antifungal called mandimycin, which has been shown to be effective against fungal infections, including drug-resistant strains such as Candida auris, in mice. Mandimycin was found to be more effective than several other commonly used antifungal drugs.
The discovery of mandimycin was made by analyzing more than 300,000 bacterial genomes, leading to the identification of a strain of bacteria called Streptomyces netropsis that produces this compound. Mandimycin has a unique structure with two sugar molecules attached to its tail, which target phospholipids in fungal cell membranes, unlike other antifungal drugs that target ergosterol. Mandimycin was found to be less toxic to the kidneys of mice and human kidney cells in lab settings compared to amphotericin B, a commonly used antifungal drug.
While mandimycin has shown promise as a potent antifungal drug, there are still many unanswered questions about its specific mechanism of action and its selectivity for targeting fungal cells while sparing human and bacterial cells. The researchers speculate that mandimycin may specifically target phospholipids found in fungi but not in other types of cells, which could explain its effectiveness without causing harm to the bacteria that produce it. Further research is needed to fully understand how mandimycin works and to address any potential drawbacks before it can be tested in humans.
The discovery of mandimycin adds to the ongoing efforts to develop new antifungal drugs to combat the rise of drug-resistant fungal infections. Understanding the unique properties of mandimycin and how it effectively kills fungi while sparing human and bacterial cells could provide valuable insights for the development of future antifungal therapies. However, there are still many complexities and challenges to address before mandimycin can be translated into a viable treatment option for fungal infections in humans. Additional research will be needed to explore the full potential of this newly discovered bacterial weapon against fungi.
