An estimated 25,000 Americans develop severe fungal infections each year, leading to 10,000 deaths despite the use of anti-fungal drugs. The associated cost to the U.S. health care system has been estimated at $1 billion a year.
Now two Syracuse University scientists have developed new brominated furanones that exhibit powerful anti-fungal properties.
The most virulent fungus is Candida albicans, which is carried by about 75 percent of the public. Typically the fungus is harmless but, in individuals with HIV or otherwise compromised immune systems, it can cause candidiasis, which has a high mortality rate. The fungi can also form biofilms that attach to surfaces and are up to 1,000 times more resistant to anti-fungals.
“These new furanones have the potential to control such infections and save lives,” says assistant professor Dacheng Ren of the Department of Biomedical and Chemical Engineering in SU’s L.C. Smith College of Engineering and Computer Science. “In our tests, they reduced fungal growth by more than 80 percent, and we hope to improve on that going forward.”
Ren and his collaborator, chemistry professor Yan-Yeung Luk of SU’s College of Arts and Sciences, have filed a non-provisional patent application. They have also published related results in the Journal of Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.
Over the past 20 years, pathogenic fungi have developed growing resistance to anti-fungal drugs. This stimulated a strong demand for more effective drugs and led to the successful research at Syracuse. The researchers’ genomic study suggests that furanones have different genetic targets than current anti-fungal agents and thus may avoid drug resistance acquired in the past.
The research team has also shown previously that these furanones inhibit bacterial biofilm formation; thus they may help control chronic infections where biofilms often appear, on surgical, dental and other implants.
Ongoing furanones research at Syracuse University will investigate a broad spectrum of other potential capabilities, ranging from diverse medical uses, such as controlling bacterial and fungal biofilms, to anti-fungal wood preservatives for the building materials market.
The Center for Scientific Review (CSR) is known as the “gateway” for National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant applications. Expert peer review groups—also called study sections—formed by the CSR assess more than 75% of the thousands of research grant applications…
Katya Mueller, a student in the School of Information Studies’ master of library and information science (MLIS) program, was selected as a 2023 National Center for Data Services data librarianship internship participant. Mueller, who plans to graduate in spring 2024,…
There are an estimated 8.7 million eukaryotic species on the planet. These are organisms whose cells contain a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles. Although eukaryotes include the familiar animals and plants, these only represent two of the more than six…
Children are taught to leave wild mushrooms alone because of their potential to be poisonous. But trees on the other hand depend on fungi for their well-being. Look no further than ectomycorrhizal fungi, which are organisms that colonize the roots…
Miguel Guzman ’24, a native of Lima, Peru, is a senior biotechnology major in the College of Arts and Sciences with an entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises minor in the Whitman School of Management. His research centers on developing bio-enabled protein…
If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.
