Angela Rivera, Won Young Lim, Eunchong Park, Patrick A Dome, Michael J Hoy, Ivan Spasojevic, Sheng Sun, Anna Floyd Averette, Sergio Pina-Oviedo, Praveen R Juvvadi, William J Steinbach, Maria Ciofani, Jiyong Hong, Joseph Heitman
Fungal infections are of mounting global concern, and the current limited treatment arsenal poses challenges when treating such infections. In particular, infections by Cryptococcus neoformans are associated with high mortality, emphasizing the need for novel therapeutic options. Calcineurin is a protein phosphatase that mediates fungal stress responses, and calcineurin inhibition by the natural product FK506 blocks C. neoformans growth at 37°C. Calcineurin is also required for pathogenesis. However, because calcineurin is conserved in humans and inhibition with FK506 results in immunosuppression, the use of FK506 as an anti-infective agent is precluded...
September 22, 2023: MBio