A drug may be classified by the chemical type of the active ingredient or by the way it is used to treat a particular condition. Each drug can be classified into one or more drug classes.
Antifungal agents are also called antimycotic agents.
Polyene antifungals bind to ergosterol, the main sterol in the fungal cell membrane, and cause depolarization of the membrane. This increases the membrane permeability and leads to cell death.
They are not absorbed when given orally, so are used to treat fungal infections of the gastrointestinal tract, such as oral thrush. For treatment of systemic fungal infections they need to be administered intravenously.
See also
Medical conditions associated with polyenes:
- Aspergillosis, Aspergilloma
- Aspergillosis, Invasive
- Blastomycosis
- Candida Infections, Systemic
- Candida Urinary Tract Infection
- Coccidioidomycosis
- Coccidioidomycosis, Meningitis
- Cryptococcal Meningitis, Immunocompetent Host
- Cryptococcal Meningitis, Immunosuppressed Host
- Cryptococcosis
- Esophageal Candidiasis
- Febrile Neutropenia
- Fungal Endocarditis
- Fungal Infection Prophylaxis
- Gastrointestinal Candidiasis
- Histoplasmosis
- Histoplasmosis, Immunocompenent Host
- Histoplasmosis, Meningitis
- Leishmaniasis
- Oral Thrush
- Paracoccidioidomycosis
- Sporotrichosis
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