Open AccessVoriconazole Inhibits Fungal Growth without Impairing Antigen Presentation or T-Cell Activation
Author(s) -
Heather L. Van Epps,
Marta Feldmesser,
Eric G. Pamer
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.07
H-Index - 259
eISSN - 1070-6283
pISSN - 0066-4804
DOI - 10.1128/aac.47.6.1818-1823.2003
Subject(s) - voriconazole , caspofungin , aspergillosis , biology , aspergillus , microbiology and biotechnology , amphotericin b , in vitro , aspergillus fumigatus , immunology , toxicity , antifungal , medicine , biochemistry
Invasive aspergillosis (IA) is the most common life-threatening invasive mold infection worldwide. The principal therapy for IA is amphotericin B, despite its known toxicity and immunosuppressive side effects. Studies in animal models of IA suggest a role for T lymphocytes in the pathology of the disease, although the precise role for Aspergillus-specific T cells remains undefined. The isolation and characterization of T lymphocytes in animal models of IA are hampered by the rapid outgrowth of the fungus in cultures derived from infected organs. In the present study, we tested the abilities of the antifungal drugs caspofungin acetate and voriconazole to inhibit fungal growth in vitro as a means of maintaining cultures of T cells from Aspergillus-infected mice. We demonstrate that while both antifungal drugs are inhibitory, only voriconazole completely inhibited fungal growth, allowing long-term maintenance of T-cell cultures. In addition, voriconazole had no inhibitory effect on the activation and maturation of dendritic cells or the proliferation of T lymphocytes. Thus, voriconazole appears to be a promising agent for use in in vitro studies of Aspergillus-specific T lymphocytes in animal models of IA.