Echinocandins: The Expanding Antifungal Armamentarium

Abstract

The echinocandins are large lipopeptide molecules that, since their discovery approximately 41 years ago, have emerged as important additions to the expanding armamentarium against invasive fungal diseases. Echinocandins exert in vitro and in vivo fungicidal action against most Candida species and fungistatic action against Aspergillus species. However, the population of patients at risk for developing invasive fungal infections continues to increase. New therapeutic strategies using echinocandins are needed to improve clinical outcomes in patients with invasive fungal disease.

Keywords: anidulafungin; caspofungin; echinocandin; invasive fungal disease; micafungin.