Candicidin and other polyenic antifungal antibiotics

About 50 polyenic antifungal antibiotics produced by actinomycetes have been isolated and described. Among these are the most effective antimonilial agents so far known. These polyenes can be classified into four broad groups depending on the number of conjugated carbon-to-carbon double bonds that are present in their chromophores. Only some of the tetraenes (four conjugated double bonds), such as nystatin and pimaricin, and a few heptaenes (seven conjugated double bonds), such as amphotericin B, Trichomycin candicidin and hamycin, have found practical application in the treatment of infectious diseases caused by fungi. Nystatin and pimaricin show the least in vitro activity against fungi, while trichomycin and candicidin are the most active. Recent clinical investigations carried out in the USA have shown that candicidin is very effective in the treatment of vaginal monilial infections.