Researchers in India have identified a novel peptide therapy that could change the way serious fungal eye infections are treated.
Fungal keratitis, a severe infection of the cornea that can threaten vision, affects many people in India, especially those in agricultural communities, while contact lens overuse and poor hygiene also contribute to corneal infections. Currently, amphotericin B is the only approved treatment for fungal eye infections, but its use is limited by harmful side effects, including nephrotoxicity and high hemolytic activity, creating a need for safer and more effective antimycotic treatments.
Scientists from the L V Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad and the Bose Institute in Kolkata, an autonomous institution under the Department of Science and Technology, have developed a 15‑amino‑acid peptide called SA‑XV, derived from a larger host‑defence peptide known as S100A12. In a recent study published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, the teams reported that SA‑XV is non‑toxic to mammalian cells, stable in serum, and capable of inhibiting the growth of both planktonic and biofilm forms of Fusarium and Candida fungi.
In experimental mouse models of fungal keratitis, SA‑XV reduced the severity of the infection. The researchers also mapped out how the peptide works: SA‑XV first interacts with the fungal cell wall and plasma membrane, crosses into the cytoplasm, and then localises to the nucleus where it binds genomic DNA and halts the fungal cell cycle. The peptide subsequently targets mitochondria, disrupts their membranes and triggers programmed cell death, or apoptosis, in the fungal cells.
The study highlights SA‑XV’s dual potential as both an antifungal agent and a promoter of corneal wound healing, suggesting it could serve as a new therapeutic option that overcomes the limitations of current treatments. The findings point to the possibility of developing peptide‑based therapies that are safer for human cells while effectively combating fungal infections of the eye.
This development opens new avenues in the search for antimycotic drugs with reduced side effects and enhanced efficacy against sight‑threatening infections.
