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Laboratory Protocols in Fungal Biology pp 225–230Cite as

Screening for Compounds Exerting Antifungal Activities

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Part of the book series: Fungal Biology ((FUNGBIO))

Abstract

There is a strong demand for the discovery of new antifungal drugs. More and more human and plant pathogenic fungi develop resistance against currently used drugs and therefore do not respond to antifungal treatments. As humans and fungi are both eukaryotic cells in which many molecular processes are conserved, compounds that have antifungal activity are also often toxic for humans. To circumvent this, it is important to develop methods and screens for the identification of compounds that specifically kill fungi but do not affect men and the environment. In this chapter, we describe methods to screen compounds for their ability to prevent growth of the filamentous fungus Aspergillus niger, and to monitor whether these compounds are fungicidal and whether they switch on the agsA reporter system, which is representative for cell wall or cell membrane stress.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department Applied and Molecular Microbiology, Berlin University of Technology, Institute of Biotechnology, Gustav-Meyer-Allee 25, Berlin, 13355, Germany

    Jean-Paul Ouedraogo & Vera Meyer

  2. Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, Leiden University, Sylviusweg 72, Leiden, 2333 BE, The Netherlands

    Ellen L. Lagendijk, Cees A. M. J. J. van den Hondel & Arthur F. J. Ram

Authors
  1. Jean-Paul Ouedraogo
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  2. Ellen L. Lagendijk
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  3. Cees A. M. J. J. van den Hondel
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  4. Arthur F. J. Ram
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  5. Vera Meyer
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Arthur F. J. Ram .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Department of Biochemistry, National University of Ireland Galway, University Road, Galway, N/A, Ireland

    Vijai Kumar Gupta

  2. , Department of Biochemistry, National University of Ireland Galway, University Road, Galway, N/A, Ireland

    Maria G. Tuohy

  3. , Department of Biochemistry, National University of Ireland Galway, University Road, Galway, N/A, Ireland

    Manimaran Ayyachamy

  4. , Manufacturing Sciences and Technology, Pfizer Ireland Pharmaceuticals, The Pfizer Biotech Campus at Grange Castle, Clondalkin, N/A, Dublin, Ireland

    Kevin M. Turner

  5. , School of Natural Sciences, National University of Ireland Galway, University Road, Galway, N/A, Ireland

    Anthonia O’Donovan

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Ouedraogo, JP., Lagendijk, E.L., van den Hondel, C.A.M.J.J., Ram, A.F.J., Meyer, V. (2013). Screening for Compounds Exerting Antifungal Activities. In: Gupta, V., Tuohy, M., Ayyachamy, M., Turner, K., O’Donovan, A. (eds) Laboratory Protocols in Fungal Biology. Fungal Biology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-2356-0_17

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