scholarly journals Activity of a Long-Acting Echinocandin, Rezafungin, and Comparator Antifungal Agents Tested against Contemporary Invasive Fungal Isolates (SENTRY Program, 2016 to 2018)

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Pfaller ◽  
Cecilia Carvalhaes ◽  
Shawn A. Messer ◽  
Paul R. Rhomberg ◽  
Mariana Castanheira

ABSTRACT We evaluated the activity of rezafungin and comparators, using Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) broth microdilution methods, against a worldwide collection of 2,205 invasive fungal isolates recovered from 2016 to 2018. Candida (n = 1,904 isolates; 6 species), Cryptococcus neoformans (n = 73), Aspergillus fumigatus (n = 183), and Aspergillus flavus (n = 45) isolates were tested for their susceptibility (S) to rezafungin as well as the comparators caspofungin, anidulafungin, micafungin, and azoles. Interpretive criteria were applied following CLSI published clinical breakpoints (CBPs) and epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs). Isolates displaying non-wild-type (non-WT) echinocandin MIC values were sequenced for hot spot (HS) mutations. Rezafungin inhibited 99.8% of Candida albicans isolates (MIC50/90, 0.03/0.06 μg/ml), 95.7% of Candida glabrata isolates (MIC50/90, 0.06/0.12 μg/ml), 97.4% of Candida tropicalis isolates (MIC50/90, 0.03/0.06 μg/ml), 100.0% of Candida krusei isolates (MIC50/90, 0.03/0.06 μg/ml), and 100.0% of Candida dubliniensis isolates (MIC50/90, 0.06/0.12 μg/ml) at ≤0.12 μg/ml. All (329/329 [100.0%]) Candida parapsilosis isolates (MIC50/90,1/2 μg/ml) were inhibited by rezafungin at ≤4 μg/ml. Fluconazole resistance was detected among 8.6% of C. glabrata isolates, 12.5% of C. parapsilosis isolates, 3.2% of C. dubliniensis isolates, and 2.6% of C. tropicalis isolates. The activity of rezafungin against these 6 Candida spp. was similar to the activity of the other echinocandins. Detection of the HS mutation was performed by sequencing echinocandin-resistant or non-WT Candida isolates. Good activity against C. neoformans was observed for fluconazole and the other azoles, whereas the echinocandins, including rezafungin, displayed limited activity. Rezafungin displayed activity similar to that of the other echinocandins against A. fumigatus and A. flavus. These in vitro data contribute to accumulating research demonstrating the potential of rezafungin for preventing and treating invasive fungal infections.

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S716-S716 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A Pfaller ◽  
Cecilia G Carvalhaes ◽  
Shawn A Messer ◽  
Paul R Rhomberg ◽  
Mariana Castanheira

Abstract Background Echinocandins are the first-line treatment of candidemia. We evaluated the activity of rezafungin (RZF), a novel long-acting echinocandin with front-loaded drug exposure and extensive distribution to sites of infection, and comparators using CLSI broth microdilution methods against 709 invasive fungal isolates collected worldwide during 2018. Methods Susceptibility (S) tests on 663 Candida spp. (6 species), 21 C. neoformans (CNEO), and 25 A. fumigatus (ASF) were conducted for RZF, anidulafungin (ANF), caspofungin (CSF), micafungin (MCF), and azoles. CLSI clinical breakpoint (CBP) and epidemiological cutoff value (ECV) interpretive criteria were applied. Isolates displaying echinocandin MIC>ECV were sequenced for fks hot spot (HS) mutations. Results RZF inhibited 99.7% of C. albicans (CA) isolates (MIC50/90, 0.015/0.06 mg/L), 100.0% of C. tropicalis (CT) (MIC50/90, 0.03/0.06 mg/L), 98.9% of C. glabrata (CG) (MIC50/90, 0.03/0.06 mg/L), 100.0% of C. krusei (CK) (MIC50/90, 0.015/0.12 mg/L), and 100.0% of C. dubliniensis (CD) (MIC50/90, 0.03/0.06 mg/L) at ≤0.12 mg/L. All (104/104 [100.0%]) C. parapsilosis (CP) isolates (MIC50/90,1/2 mg/L) were inhibited by RZF at ≤2 mg/L. Fluconazole resistance was detected among 9.0% of CG, 17.3% of CP, and 1.6% of CT. The activity of RZF against these 6 Candida spp. was similar to that of the other echinocandins, the vast majority of which were susceptible/wild type (WT) using CBP/ECV. A total of 5 isolates (3 CG, 1 CA, and 1 CT) displayed 1 or more non-WT or-resistant MIC values and were sequenced for fks HS mutations. Fluconazole and other azoles displayed good activity against CNEO whereas echinocandins including RZF displayed limited activity against CNEO isolates. Echinocandins displayed good activity against ASF, and RZF activity was similar to that of anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin. All but 1 isolate (non-WT MIC for itraconazole, 2 mg/L) displayed WT MIC values for the mould-active azoles. Conclusion Rezafungin was as active as other echinocandins against common organisms recovered from invasive fungal infections. These in vitro data contribute to accumulating research demonstrating rezafungin potential for prevention and treatment of invasive fungal infection. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.


2017 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A. Pfaller ◽  
Shawn A. Messer ◽  
Paul R. Rhomberg ◽  
Mariana Castanheira

ABSTRACT The activity of CD101 and comparator antifungal agents against 606 invasive fungal isolates collected worldwide during 2014 was evaluated using the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) method. All Candida albicans (n = 251), Candida tropicalis (n = 51), Candida krusei (n = 16), and Candida dubliniensis (n = 11) isolates were inhibited by ≤0.12 μg/ml of CD101 and were susceptible or showed wild-type susceptibility to the other echinocandins tested. Five C. glabrata isolates (n = 100) displayed CD101 MIC values of 1 to 4 μg/ml, had elevated MICs of caspofungin (2 to >8 μg/ml), anidulafungin (2 to 4 μg/ml), and micafungin (2 to 4 μg/ml), and carried mutations on fks1 and fks2. Candida parapsilosis (n = 92) and Candida orthopsilosis (n = 10) displayed higher CD101 MIC values (ranges, 0.5 to 4 μg/ml and 0.12 to 2 μg/ml, respectively), and similar results were observed for the other echinocandins tested. Fluconazole resistance was noted among 11.0% of Candida glabrata isolates, 4.3% of C. parapsilosis isolates, and 2.0% of C. albicans and C. tropicalis isolates. The activity of CD101 against Aspergillus fumigatus (n = 56) was similar to that of micafungin and 2-fold greater than that of caspofungin but less than that of anidulafungin. These isolates had wild-type susceptibility to itraconazole, voriconazole, and posaconazole. The echinocandins had limited activity against Cryptococcus neoformans (n = 19). CD101 was as active as the other echinocandins against common fungal organisms recovered from patients with invasive fungal infections. The long half-life profile is very desirable for the prevention and treatment of serious fungal infections, especially in patients who can then be discharged from the hospital to complete antifungal therapy on an outpatient basis.


2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Maiken Cavling Arendrup ◽  
Karin Meinike Jørgensen

ABSTRACT Manogepix (APX001A) is the active moiety of the novel drug candidate fosmanogepix (APX001). We previously reported the broad-spectrum activity of manogepix but also observed a correlation between increased manogepix and fluconazole MICs. Here, we extended this study and included isolates with acquired fluconazole resistance. Isolates (n = 835) were identified using CHROMagar, matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS), and, when needed, internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequencing. EUCAST E.Def 7.3.1 susceptibility testing included manogepix, amphotericin B, anidulafungin, micafungin, fluconazole, and voriconazole. Manogepix wild-type-upper-limit (WT-UL) values were established following EUCAST principles for the epidemiological cutoff value (ECOFF) setting allowing wild-type/non-wild-type classification. Drug-specific MIC correlations were investigated using Pearson’s correlation. Manogepix modal MICs were low (range, 0.004 to 0.06 mg/liter against 16/20 included species). Exceptions were Candida krusei and Candida inconspicua and, to a lesser extent, Candida kefyr and Pichia kluyveri. The activity was independent of Fks echinocandin hot spot alterations (n = 17). Adopting the WT-UL established for Candida albicans, Candida dubliniensis, Candida glabrata, Candida parapsilosis, and Candida tropicalis, 14/724 (1.9%) isolates were non-wild type for manogepix. Twelve of these (85.7%) were also non-wild type for fluconazole. A statistically significant correlation was observed between manogepix and fluconazole MICs for C. albicans, C. dubliniensis, C. glabrata, C. parapsilosis, and C. tropicalis (Pearson’s r = 0.401 to 0.575) but not between manogepix and micafungin or amphotericin B MICs for any species except C. tropicalis (r = 0.519 for manogepix versus micafungin). Broad-spectrum activity was confirmed for manogepix against contemporary yeast. However, a 1 to 4 2-fold dilutions increase in manogepix MICs is observed in a subset of isolates with acquired fluconazole resistance. Further studies on the potential underlying mechanism and implication for optimal dosing are warranted.


2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (9) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hailin Zheng ◽  
Nana Song ◽  
Huan Mei ◽  
Jiacheng Dong ◽  
Dongmei Li ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The in vitro activities of 11 antifungals against 84 dematiaceous fungi were tested. For most tested fungal species, the MIC values of ravuconazole and isavuconazole were lower than those obtained with itraconazole, voriconazole, and posaconazole. Ravuconazole and isavuconazole appear to be more efficient against most dematiaceous fungal infections than the other triazoles. However, some pigmented fungi, such as Bipolaris spicifera and Veronaea botryosa, remain more susceptible to other triazoles or to echinocandins.


2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
YanChun Zhu ◽  
Shannon Kilburn ◽  
Mili Kapoor ◽  
Sudha Chaturvedi ◽  
Karen Joy Shaw ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT An ongoing Candida auris outbreak in the New York metropolitan area is the largest recorded to date in North America. Laboratory surveillance revealed NY C. auris isolates are resistant to fluconazole, with variable resistance to other currently used broad-spectrum antifungal drugs, and that several isolates are panresistant. Thus, there is an urgent need for new drugs with a novel mechanism of action to combat the resistance challenge. Manogepix (MGX) is a first-in-class agent that targets the fungal Gwt1 enzyme. The prodrug fosmanogepix is currently in phase 2 clinical development for the treatment of fungal infections. We evaluated the susceptibility of 200 New York C. auris isolates to MGX and 10 comparator drugs using CLSI methodology. MGX demonstrated lower MICs than comparators (MIC50 and MIC90, 0.03 mg/liter; range, 0.004 to 0.06 mg/liter). The local epidemiological cutoff value (ECV) for MGX indicated all C. auris isolates were within the population of wild-type (WT) strains; 0.06 mg/liter defines the upper limit of wild type (UL-WT). MGX was 8- to 32-fold more active than the echinocandins, 16- to 64-fold more active than the azoles, and 64-fold more active than amphotericin B. No differences were found in the MGX or comparators’ MIC50, MIC90, or geometric mean (GM) values when subsets of clinical, surveillance, and environmental isolates were evaluated. The range of MGX MIC values for six C. auris panresistant isolates was 0.008 to 0.015 mg/liter, and the median and mode MIC values were 0.015 mg/liter, demonstrating that MGX retains activity against these isolates. These data support further clinical evaluation of fosmanogepix for the treatment of C. auris infections, including highly resistant isolates.


2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (8) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Pfaller ◽  
M. D. Huband ◽  
R. K. Flamm ◽  
P. A. Bien ◽  
M. Castanheira

ABSTRACT Current antifungal agents cover a majority of opportunistic fungal pathogens; however, breakthrough invasive fungal infections continue to occur and increasingly involve relatively uncommon yeasts and molds, which often exhibit decreased susceptibility. APX001A (manogepix) is a first-in-class small-molecule inhibitor of the conserved fungal Gwt1 protein. This enzyme is required for acylation of inositol during glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor biosynthesis. APX001A is active against the major fungal pathogens, i.e., Candida (except Candida krusei), Aspergillus, and hard-to-treat molds, including Fusarium and Scedosporium. In this study, we tested APX001A and comparators against 1,706 contemporary clinical fungal isolates collected in 2017 from 68 medical centers in North America (37.3%), Europe (43.4%), the Asia-Pacific region (12.7%), or Latin America (6.6%). Among the isolates tested, 78.5% were Candida spp., 3.9% were non-Candida yeasts, including 30 (1.8%) Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii isolates, 14.7% were Aspergillus spp., and 2.9% were other molds. All isolates were tested by CLSI reference broth microdilution. APX001A (MIC50, 0.008 μg/ml; MIC90, 0.06 μg/ml) was the most active agent tested against Candida sp. isolates; corresponding anidulafungin, micafungin, and fluconazole MIC90 values were 16- to 64-fold higher. Similarly, APX001A (MIC50, 0.25 μg/ml; MIC90, 0.5 μg/ml) was ≥8-fold more active than anidulafungin, micafungin, and fluconazole against C. neoformans var. grubii. Against Aspergillus spp., AXP001A (50% minimal effective concentration [MEC50], 0.015 μg/ml; MEC90, 0.03 μg/ml) was comparable in activity to anidulafungin and micafungin. Aspergillus isolates (>98%) exhibited a wild-type phenotype for the mold-active triazoles (itraconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole). APX001A was highly active against uncommon species of Candida, non-Candida yeasts, and rare molds, including 11 isolates of Scedosporium spp. (MEC values, 0.015 to 0.06 μg/ml). APX001A demonstrated potent in vitro activity against recent fungal isolates, including echinocandin- and fluconazole-resistant strains. The extended spectrum of APX001A was also notable for its potency against many less common but antifungal-resistant strains. Further studies are in progress to evaluate the clinical utility of the methyl phosphate prodrug, APX001, in difficult-to-treat resistant fungal infections.


2011 ◽  
Vol 55 (5) ◽  
pp. 2245-2255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guillermo Garcia-Effron ◽  
Steven Park ◽  
David S. Perlin

ABSTRACTEchinocandins are highly bound to serum proteins, altering their antifungal properties. The addition of 50% human serum to the MIC assay improves the identification of echinocandin-resistantCandidaspp. harboringfkshot spot mutations. However, this modification cannot readily be applied to the method of the CLSI M27-A3 document due to safety and standardization difficulties. The aim of this study was to evaluate commercial bovine serum albumin (BSA) as a safe and standardized alternative to human serum. A collection of 28 echinocandin-susceptible strains, 10Candida parapsilosissensu lato strains (with naturally reduced echinocandin susceptibility), and 40FKShot spot mutants was used in this work. When RPMI 1640 was used for susceptibility testing, wild-type strains andfksmutants showed MIC range overlaps (−2, −1, and −3 2-fold-dilution steps separated these populations for anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin, respectively). On the other hand, the addition of BSA to RPMI 1640 differentially increased echinocandin MIC values for these groups of strains, allowing better separation between populations, with no MIC range overlaps for any of the echinocandin drugs tested. Moreover, the use of RPMI-BSA reduced the number offkshot spot mutant isolates for which MIC values were less than or equal to the upper limit for the wild type (very major errors) from 9, 2, and 7 with RPMI alone to 3, 0, and 3 for anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin, respectively. When RPMI-BSA was used to study the susceptibility ofC. parapsilosissensu lato species to echinocandins, the strains behaved as anidulafungin- and micafungin-resistant isolates (MIC, ≥8 μg/ml). These data support the need for a revision of the CLSI protocol forin vitrotesting of echinocandin susceptibility in order to identify all or most of thefkshot spot mutants. Also, caspofungin could be used as a surrogate marker of reduced susceptibility to echinocandins.


2018 ◽  
Vol 63 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan K. Shields ◽  
Ellen G. Kline ◽  
Kelley R. Healey ◽  
Milena Kordalewska ◽  
David S. Perlin ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Echinocandins are front-line agents for treatment of invasive candidiasis. There are no reported agent-specific differences in Candida mutational frequency of resistance or propensity to develop FKS mutations. The objective of this study was to measure spontaneous and FKS mutation rates among Candida glabrata strains. Twenty bloodstream isolates from patients with or without prior echinocandin exposure were included. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs), minimum fungicidal concentrations (MFCs), and mutation prevention concentrations were higher for caspofungin than for anidulafungin (P < 0.0001) and micafungin (P < 0.0001). Mutational frequencies of resistance at 3× the baseline MIC were highest for caspofungin and lowest for micafungin. A total of 247 isolates were recovered at or above the MFC for caspofungin (n = 159), anidulafungin (n = 74), or micafungin (n = 14). Agent-specific MIC increases were noted for anidulafungin and caspofungin, but not micafungin. Thirty-three percent of isolates harbored hot spot mutations in FKS1 (n = 6) or FKS2 (n = 76). Mutations at the Ser629 (Fks1) or Ser663 (Fks2) loci were more common after selection with anidulafungin or micafungin than with caspofungin (P = 0.003). Four isolates demonstrated >4-fold increases in MICs without FKS hot spot mutations; three of these harbored Fks2 mutations upstream of hot spot 1. The final isolate was FKS1 and FKS2 wild-type, but the 50% inhibitory concentrations of caspofungin and micafungin were increased 2.7- and 8-fold, respectively. In conclusion, micafungin may be superior in vitro to the other agents in limiting the emergence of resistance among C. glabrata. Caspofungin exposure may be most likely to promote resistance development. These data provide a foundation for future investigations of newly developed echinocandin agents.


2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. e01948-20
Author(s):  
Dalin Rifat ◽  
Si-Yang Li ◽  
Thomas Ioerger ◽  
Keshav Shah ◽  
Jean-Philippe Lanoix ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe nitroimidazole prodrugs delamanid and pretomanid comprise one of only two new antimicrobial classes approved to treat tuberculosis (TB) in 50 years. Prior in vitro studies suggest a relatively low barrier to nitroimidazole resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis, but clinical evidence is limited to date. We selected pretomanid-resistant M. tuberculosis mutants in two mouse models of TB using a range of pretomanid doses. The frequency of spontaneous resistance was approximately 10−5 CFU. Whole-genome sequencing of 161 resistant isolates from 47 mice revealed 99 unique mutations, of which 91% occurred in 1 of 5 genes previously associated with nitroimidazole activation and resistance, namely, fbiC (56%), fbiA (15%), ddn (12%), fgd (4%), and fbiB (4%). Nearly all mutations were unique to a single mouse and not previously identified. The remaining 9% of resistant mutants harbored mutations in Rv2983 (fbiD), a gene not previously associated with nitroimidazole resistance but recently shown to be a guanylyltransferase necessary for cofactor F420 synthesis. Most mutants exhibited high-level resistance to pretomanid and delamanid, although Rv2983 and fbiB mutants exhibited high-level pretomanid resistance but relatively small changes in delamanid susceptibility. Complementing an Rv2983 mutant with wild-type Rv2983 restored susceptibility to pretomanid and delamanid. By quantifying intracellular F420 and its precursor Fo in overexpressing and loss-of-function mutants, we provide further evidence that Rv2983 is necessary for F420 biosynthesis. Finally, Rv2983 mutants and other F420H2-deficient mutants displayed hypersusceptibility to some antibiotics and to concentrations of malachite green found in solid media used to isolate and propagate mycobacteria from clinical samples.


2012 ◽  
Vol 56 (8) ◽  
pp. 4146-4153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zaid Al-Nakeeb ◽  
Ajay Sudan ◽  
Adam R. Jeans ◽  
Lea Gregson ◽  
Joanne Goodwin ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTItraconazole is used for the prevention and treatment of infections caused byAspergillus fumigatus. An understanding of the pharmacodynamics of itraconazole against wild-type and triazole-resistant strains provides a basis for innovative therapeutic strategies for treatment of infections. Anin vitromodel of the human alveolus was used to define the pharmacodynamics of itraconazole. Galactomannan was used as a biomarker. The effect of systemic and airway administration of itraconazole was assessed, as was a combination of itraconazole administered to the airway and systemically administered 5FC. Systemically administered itraconazole against the wild type induced a concentration-dependent decline in galactomannan in the alveolar and endothelial compartments. No exposure-response relationships were apparent for the L98H, M220T, or G138C mutant. The administration of itraconazole to the airway resulted in comparable exposure-response relationships to those observed with systemic therapy. This was achieved without detectable concentrations of drug within the endothelial compartment. The airway administration of itraconazole resulted in a definite but submaximal effect in the endothelial compartment against the L98H mutant. The administration of 5FC resulted in a concentration-dependent decline in galactomannan in both the alveolar and endothelial compartments. The combination of airway administration of itraconazole and systemically administered 5FC was additive. Systemic administration of itraconazole is ineffective against Cyp51 mutants. The airway administration of itraconazole is effective for the treatment of wild-type strains and appears to have some activity against the L98H mutants. Combination with other agents, such as 5FC, may enable the attainment of near-maximal antifungal activity.


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