Mucormycosis medications: a patent review

ABSTRACT

Introduction

Mucormycosis is an uncommon but life-threatening infection with nonspecific clinical manifestations that make its diagnosis/treatment difficult. The current literature indicates that mucormycosis case incidences are on the rise in developing and developed countries, and, unfortunately, there are only a few treatments available. Accordingly, it is essential to provide more treatment options for mucormycosis.

Area Covered

This patent review focuses on the granted patents and patent applications related to medication for mucormycosis treatment from the publication year of the amphotericin-B patent application (1958) till 30 January 2021.

Expert Opinion

Mucormycosis has few available treatments, including amphotericin-B, isavuconazonium sulfate, posaconazole, or their combination. A few anti-mucormycosis medicines are under clinical development. The exact burden of mucormycosis is unknown, but it is expected to be higher than the reported cases because of mucormycosis epidemiological changes. This patent review has shown that scientists are progressing toward developing a new treatment for mucormycosis in the form of new chemical compounds, new drug combinations, and dosage forms, vaccines, plant products, drug repurposing, and derivatives of the biomolecules. This progress is encouraging to fight this devastating illness.

KEYWORDS:

• Mucormycosis
• clinical trial
• drug combinations
• herbal products
• patent review
• vaccines

Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership, or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers in this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Article highlights

• Mucormycosis is an uncommon, life-threatening infection with fewer available treatments

• Several patents/patent applications on the medication for mucormycosis have been published

• The patented treatments are directed to new chemical compounds, drug combinations, and new dosage forms of the existing medicines, vaccines, herbal products, and the drug repurposing of the EGFR inhibitors

• Many patented treatments are related to the new targets and diagnostic methods

• A few medicines are under clinical development for mucormycosis

This box summarizes key points contained in the article.

Additional information

Funding

This work did not receive any funding.