Invasive fungal disease in humans: are we aware of the real impact?

Abstract

Despite the medical advances and interventions to improve the quality of life of those in intensive care, people with cancer or severely immunocompromised or other susceptible hosts, invasive fungal diseases (IFD) remain severe and underappreciated causes of illness and death worldwide. Therefore, IFD continue to be a public health threat and a major hindrance to the success of otherwise life-saving treatments and procedures. Globally, hundreds of thousands of people are affected every year with Candida albicans, Aspergillus fumigatus, Cryptococcus neoformans, Pneumocystis jirovecii, endemic dimorphic fungi and Mucormycetes, the most common fungal species causing invasive diseases in humans. These infections result in morbidity and mortality rates that are unacceptable and represent a considerable socioeconomic burden. Raising the general awareness of the significance and impact of IFD in human health, in both the hospital and the community, is hence critical to understand the scale of the problem and to raise interest to help fighting these devastating diseases.

Counteraction of Biofilm Formation and Antimicrobial Potential of Terminalia catappa Functionalized Silver Nanoparticles against Candida albicans and Multidrug-Resistant Gram-Negative and Gram-Positive Bacteria

“…The Gram-negative multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDR-PA) and Gram-positive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) human pathogens are the leading causes of nosocomial infections in hospitals globally [ 1 , 2 ]. In the same line, colonization of Candida albicans in urinary catheters and endotracheal tubes implanted in immunocompromised patients indicates the alarming frequency of fungal infections [ 3 , 4 ]. Matured biofilms of MDR-PA, MRSA, and C. albicans are comprised of a complex three-dimensional structure of multiple stacked layers and aggregated clusters of their cells, hyphae, extracellular DNA, proteins, and abundant exopolysaccharide (EPS) matrix [ 5 , 6 , 7 ].…”

Antifungal Activity of Minocycline and Azoles Against Fluconazole-Resistant Candida Species

“…Invasive fungal infections represent an increasingly common threat to human health ( Firacative, 2020 ), with Candida species serving as the leading cause of fungal infections and the fourth most prominent source of bloodstream infections globally, resulting in over 750,000 infections and a 40% mortality rate globally each year ( McCarty and Pappas, 2016 ; Tsay et al, 2020 ). Candida albicans is the leading pathogenic member of this family, accounting for roughly half of these infections, followed by Candida glabrata , Candida tropicalis , Candida parapsilosis , and Candida krusei .…”

Rondonin: antimicrobial properties and mechanism of action

“…Some fungic diseases began to receive attention in the last century, especially in the final two decades, with the advent of AIDS, advances in the treatment of basic diseases, greater use of antimicrobials, and improvement of transplantation techniques, that is, with the increasing patient survival. Among the fungi responsible for diseases in immunodepressed individuals and, in apparently healthy individuals, species of the genus Candida are found [1][2][3] approximately 200 different species of yeasts, which normally live in the most diverse bodily niches, such as the oropharynx, oral cavity, skin folds, bronchial secretions, vagina, urine and feces. Among the species that make up this genus, Candida albicans is more relevant due to its prevalence rate in normal and disease conditions [4,5].…”