About
Due to the dramatic increase in fungal infections, their effective control appears to be a current and very important problem. Amphotericin B belongs to the group of life-saving antibiotics used in the treatment of intracorporeal mycoses. Unfortunately, the very high effectiveness of this antibiotic is associated with severe toxic side effects for patients. The research activity of many laboratories around the world is focused on the problem of developing a pharmacological formula of this antibiotic, effective in combating mycoses and at the same time characterized by minimized toxicity to human cells.
As part of the current project, we intend to undertake this type of research using microscopic techniques based on fluorescence lifetime imaging and Raman resonance scattering. These techniques enable imaging of the location of amphotericin B molecules in human cells and in fungal cells. Moreover, these techniques allow the study of the specific molecular organization of antibiotic molecules and their interactions with other biomolecules, such as lipids and sterols, responsible for the biological activity of the antibiotic as well as for toxic side effects.
One of the goals of our project is to separate the pharmacologically desirable biological effects of amphotericin B from the toxic side effects of the antibiotic for patients by developing nanostructures that are characterized by specifically different types of interactions of the antibiotic with cell membranes.
We hope that our research will significantly broaden the knowledge of the detailed molecular mechanisms responsible for the biological activity of amphotericin B. We also hope that the expected results of the project will bring closer us to the goal of developing a pharmacological formula of an antibiotic that is safe for patients.
