The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued warnings this week about a dangerous fungus that has become far more prevalent in the United States since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and poses a deadly threat, especially in hospitals.
It all sounds like an HBO show setup Last of Us, is set after a fungal infection effectively ended civilization. This fungus will not cause the next pandemic. But resistance to antifungal drugs and its rapid spread across the United States is a concern, and new data from the CDC show fungi are a significant threat facing the healthcare system.
So what is the CDC so concerned about? Here’s a quick primer.
What is Candida auris?
Fungi are known as Candida aurisIt was first identified in the ear of a Japanese hospital patient in 2009. Ha. ear Yeast.one of the hundreds of yeast species within the genus Candida. cousin C. albicans, a common yeast that causes thrush-like infections.other species of Candida It can also cause an infection commonly known as candidiasis.
C. auris It first appeared in the United States in 2016, with some cases in New York City and Chicago. More than half of the states in the United States now have infections, and it is spreading widely across the country.
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A major concern of CDC officials is that most cases of fungus found in the United States are resistant to several drugs used to control fungal infections, some used to fight candidiasis. It is resistant to the three major classes of antifungal drugs that are commonly used.
Degree of threat to health C. Auris Pause?
Fungi generally pose no direct threat to healthy people, but are often fatal in very sick people. and those in health care facilities are at greatest risk. For these people, the fungus can be severe and often fatal.CDC To tell 30% to 60% of those people C. auris Although data are limited, the infection died.
why are you talking about this now?
CDC scientists published a paper in a scientific journal Monday night Annals of internal medicine about the spread of C. auris in the United States from 2019 to 2021.
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Scientists have seen a 44% increase in clinical cases in 2019 and a 95% increase in 2021 as the fungus spread to 17 new states. C. auris The number of patients resistant to the most important treatment for candidiasis, known as echinocandins, will triple in 2021.
actual number C. auris The case remains relatively small, but is growing rapidly. CDC experts counted 3,270 clinical infections since the fungus was first identified in the United States. The number of cases increased rapidly from 765 in 2020 to 1,471 in 2021.
Scientists found antifungal resistance was growing as well. C. auris Those tested are resistant to a class of antifungal agents known as azoles, many are resistant to amphotericin B, and a small but growing number are resistant to echinocandins.
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The number of people with infections resistant to echinocandins jumped from 2 in 2018 to 15 in 2020. 7 in 2021.
“Although echinocandin resistance is still rare, the number of echinocandin-resistant cases is slowly rising, and will rise significantly in 2021, with multiple outbreaks of these resistant strains raising concerns about infection.” The scientist wrote, “Echinocandins are an invasive first-line treatment, so even this small increase is concerning. Candida infections and most C. auris Infection.
why did this happen?
The CDC authors say many factors likely contributed to the fungal spread, including a failure to identify cases of infection. C. auris Early infection, inadequate infection control measures.
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They say the explosion in cases during the Covid-19 pandemic may be partly due to the strain the pandemic has placed on health systems and public health infrastructure. Although the pandemic has heightened attention to some aspects of infection control, the paper notes that other infection control measures not related to Covid-19 lagged behind during the period, and that the fungus has spread in some healthcare settings. This suggests that it made it possible to spread.
What can be done to stop the spread of fungi?
most of the cases of C. auris In the United States, it occurs in long-term acute care hospitals, where patients are often hospitalized for long periods. Reducing the spread of the fungus will require “investments in improving case detection and infection control, especially in long-term care facilities,” the authors wrote.
CDC epidemiologist Dr. Megan Lyman, lead author of the paper, said: statement The fungal epidemic “emphasizes the need for continuous surveillance, expanded laboratory capacity, rapid diagnostic testing, and adherence to proven infection prevention and control.”
C. Are there any companies working on treatments for Auris?
Yes, thanks in part to funding from the US government’s Office for Advanced Biomedical Research and Development announced late last year. fundraising For the development of new antifungal agents. Biotechnology company Scynexis (NYSE: SCYX) is developing a new antifungal agent called Ibrexafungerp that can treat C. auris, among other fungal infections. Scynexis shares rose 31.2% on Tuesday. Pfizer (PFE) is testing an antifungal drug called Fosmanogepix. This is a drug that we acquired in 2021. Buy private biotech Amplyx Pharmaceuticals.
Please contact Josh Nathan-Kazis at josh.nathan-kazis@barrons.com.
