Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42730929›Full record

ArticleApplied microbiology and biotechnology2026

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

Abstract read
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Article in Applied microbiology and biotechnology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Ahmed RezkDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mansoura University, Mansoura, 35516, Egypt.
Heba S SaidDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mansoura University, Mansoura, 35516, Egypt. hebashehta@mans.edu.eg.
Sherin M ElfekyDepartment of Pharmaceutical Organic Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mansoura University, Mansoura, 35516, Egypt.
Mohammed El-MowafyDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mansoura University, Mansoura, 35516, Egypt.
Ramadan HassanDepartment of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mansoura University, Mansoura, 35516, Egypt.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The incidence of Candida albicans infections has risen markedly, particularly among immunocompromised individuals and cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Fluconazole is commonly used as a first-line treatment for C. albicans infections; however, increasing clinical resistance poses a significant therapeutic challenge. As a result, developing new strategies to enhance the management of C. albicans infections has become critical. This study aims to assess the prevalence of azole's resistance among clinical C. albicans isolates in Egypt and to evaluate disulfiram/fluconazole combination against fluconazole resistant isolates. A total of 64 C. albicans clinical isolates were tested for fluconazole susceptibility using disc diffusion method and broth microdilution method (alone and in combination with disulfiram). The combination of fluconazole and disulfiram was further assessed using checkerboard method. The expression levels of resistance determinants were analyzed using RT-PCR. Molecular docking was used for further analysis. Sixteen isolates (25%) were resistant to fluconazole. Combination with subinhibitory concentration of disulfiram reduced the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of fluconazole in resistant isolates (2-128 fold). Checkerboard assay revealed that fluconazole/disulfiram combination was mostly synergistic. In fluconazole-resistant isolates, Cdr1 was overexpressed, whereas disulfiram (at subinhibitory concentration) has triggered its downregulation. Docking studies showed that disulfiram may compete with ATP for binding and may disrupt fluconazole's interaction with Cdr1. Additionally, disulfiram exhibited a potent anti-biofilm activity against the tested C. albicans isolates. Fluconazole/disulfiram combination appears to be a promising approach for overcoming fluconazole resistance in C. albicans. Further studies are needed to validate this finding and explore its clinical potential. KEY POINTS: • Fluconazole/disulfiram combination is a promising approach to overcome fluconazole resistance in C. albicans • Disulfiram triggered downregulation of Cdr1 expression in fluconazole-resistant C. albicans. • Disulfiram competes with ATP for Cdr1 binding, disrupting fluconazole-Cdr1 interaction.

Indexed as

Antifungal AgentsBiofilmsCandida albicansDisulfiramDrug Resistance, FungalFluconazoleFungal ProteinsMembrane Transport ProteinsCandidiasisDrug SynergismHumansMicrobial Sensitivity TestsMolecular Docking SimulationAntifungal AgentsCDR1 protein, Candida albicansDisulfiramFluconazoleFungal ProteinsMembrane Transport ProteinsCandida albicansCdr1DisulfiramEfflux pumpFluconazoleFluconazole-resistance

Identifiers

PMID42730929
PMCPMC13570854

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.