Fig 1.
Diagram representing the current drug targets and mechanism of action for mucormycosis.
(A) Polyenes, such as AMB, targets ergosterol and functions by binding and sequestering the ergosterol resulting in cell membrane instability and pore formation. Echinocandins display fungistatic activity by entering the fungal cell and noncompetitively inhibits 1,3 –β glucan synthase, an enzyme that is necessary for the assembly of an essential component of the cell wall of several fungi. Azoles block the synthesis of cell membrane-stabilizing ergosterol via the inhibition of lanosterol 14- α—demethylase enzyme. (B) Calcineurin is a regulator of Mucor morphology; active calcineurin promotes hyphal growth. This regulation is maintained by suppressing the expression of the bycA gene. *Additional models for the mechanism of action for AMB have been proposed; one is the sterol sponge model where AMB is laterally adsorbed onto the membrane surface of the fungus. This figure was created with BioRender.com.