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Editorial
. 2020 Jun 1;7(6):143-145.
doi: 10.15698/mic2020.06.718.

Fungal infections in humans: the silent crisis

Katharina Kainz  1 , Maria A Bauer  1 , Frank Madeo  1   2   3 , Didac Carmona-Gutierrez  1
Affiliations
Editorial

Fungal infections in humans: the silent crisis

Katharina Kainz et al. Microb Cell. .

Abstract

Annually, over 150 million severe cases of fungal infections occur worldwide, resulting in approximately 1.7 million deaths per year. Alarmingly, these numbers are continuously on the rise with a number of social and medical developments during the past decades that have abetted the spread of fungal infections. Additionally, the long-term therapeutic application and prophylactic use of antifungal drugs in high-risk patients have promoted the emergence of (multi)drug-resistant fungi, including the extremely virulent strain Candida auris. Hence, fungal infections are already a global threat that is becoming increasingly severe. In this article, we underline the importance of more and effective research to counteract fungal infections and their consequences.

Keywords: Candida; antifungals; antimycotics; azoles; drug; resistance; yeast.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: D.C-G. and F.M. are the scientific co-founders of Samsara Therapeutics, a company that develops novel pharmacological autophagy inducers. F.M. and D.C-G. have equity interests in TLL (The Longevity Labs), a company that develops natural food extracts.

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