Adaptative response of Candida auris to anidulafungin and natural compounds with anti-Candida auris potential

• Grant number: 23/12793-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• Start date until: April 01, 2024
• End date until: March 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Pharmacy
• Principal Investigator: Kelly Ishida
• Grantee: Henrique Santos Moure
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Candida auris was described in 2009, and joined the World Health Organization's critical priority group of fungi in 2022. It is an opportunistic pathogen that colonizes abiotic surfaces and the skin, being related to high mortality rates and difficulty of containment among patients in intensive care units. Some countries had their first case of C. auris infections during the COVID-19 pandemic, Brazil being one of them. Treatment with available antifungals can last for months and infections can be recalcitrant and recurrent. Its competence in biofilm formation is crucial for the permanence of viable cells, and for the survival against drugs and sanitizers, giving shelter to the presence of the highly tolerant phenotype of persister cells. Given the emergence of multiresistant fungi, the search for new molecules, pharmacophoric groups or molecular models in nature can help in the development of antifungals. Promising studies involve molecules obtained from plant extracts, although the mechanism of action is still poorly understood. The objective of this work will be to evaluate the eradication or formation of aggregates, pseudofilaments and persister cells of Candida auris on exposure to anidulafungin and the antifungal activity of extracts, fractions and/or compounds isolated from natural products alone or combined with standard antifungals on C. auris. (AU)