Application:
- Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) represent a major and growing clinical challenge with high mortality rates
- Resistance to existing antifungal therapies is increasing across all major drug classes
- Current antifungal treatments are limited by toxicity, narrow spectrum, and fungistatic activity
- Â We discovered a new target essential to fungal viability and biosynthesis that was clinically unexploited
- No new antifungal mechanism has entered clinical use in more than a decade
Our Innovation
- Discovery that a class of small molecules originally developed for a human membrane protein has direct antifungal activity
- Identification of a new target, enabled by recognizing structural similarity between the human protein and the fungal targetÂ
- Creation of a new antifungal mechanism based on the new target inhibition rather than existing drug classes
- Structure-guided optimization approach to confirm target engagement and improve antifungal potency
- Broad in vitro activity against clinically relevant and drug-resistant fungi
Advantages
- First-in-class mechanism of action targeting the new targetÂ
- Distinct chemical space differentiated from all approved antifungal drugs
- Demonstrated activity against resistant fungal pathogens
- Mechanism-driven development, reducing empirical screening risk
- Clear translational path toward preclinical candidate nominationÂ
Commercial Opportunity
We are seeking collaboration with pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies active in anti-infective drug development
Contact in Yissum: Ariela Markel
