Disulfiram reverses fluconazole-resistance mediated by Cdr1 in Candida albicans and interferes with biofilm formation
Ahmed Rezk, Heba S Said, Sherin M Elfeky, Mohammed El-Mowafy, Ramadan Hassan · 2026
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Description
The yeast Candida albicans increasingly resists fluconazole, a first-line antifungal, by pumping the drug out through a transporter called Cdr1. Ahmed Rezk and four co-authors test an unlikely ally: disulfiram, an old drug used against alcohol dependence. They gather 64 clinical isolates in Egypt, a quarter of them fluconazole-resistant, and test drug combinations in the lab.
Adding a low, sub-killing dose of disulfiram cut the fluconazole dose needed against resistant isolates by up to 128-fold, mostly in true synergy. Resistant cells overproduced the Cdr1 pump; disulfiram switched that gene down, and computer docking suggests it jams the pump's fuel site. The drug also attacked biofilms strongly on its own. The authors call the pairing promising and urge further study, in 2026.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Ahmed Rezk, Heba S Said, Sherin M Elfeky, Mohammed El-Mowafy, Ramadan Hassan |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 38 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |