A deadly fungus may not live to see the last of us

The battle against the deadly fungal disease Aspergillus fumigatus is taking a new turn. Once a well-known pathogen causing severe respiratory infections, there is growing concern as environmentally acquired antifungal-resistant strains begin infecting patients. José M. Vargas-Muñiz, an assistant professor of biological sciences, noted that the mortality rate can range from 30% to 90% even with treatment.

A recent study published in Molecular Biology of the Cell by Rebecca Jean Busch and her team may hold the key to defeating this lethal fungus. By identifying how Aspergillus fumigatus resists current treatments, the researchers successfully killed the pathogen in animal studies. Busch explained that there are very few options for antifungal drugs, with only around 10 available compared to hundreds of antibacterial drugs.

Echinocandins, which stop the growth of the fungus, do not kill it. However, when the researchers genetically modified the fungal pathogen by stripping it of proteins that regulate cell walls, the echinocandin drug proved effective in both lab and animal tests. This breakthrough demonstrates how these proteins contribute to echinocandin tolerance, offering potential targets for improving antifungal efficacy.

The study emphasizes the need for more targeted attacks with echinocandins to combat this invasive, hard-to-diagnose fungal disease, which has the highest per-patient cost of any fungal infection in the United States, costing an estimated $1.3 billion annually.