Effect of Amphotericin B on Capsule and Cell Size in Cryptococcus neoformans during Murine Infection

Antifungal drugs can affect the cellular morphology of Cryptococcus neoformans in culture, which alters its interactions with phagocytes. We examined the effects of amphotericin B on C. neoformans during murine infection. The antifungal reduced capsule size and serum polysaccharide, which suggests an additional mechanism for amphotericin B’s efficacy in cryptococcosis. Cryptococcus neoformans is an encapsulated yeast-like fun-gus of worldwide distribution that is a relatively frequent cause of serious disease in immunocompromised patients. Ampho-tericin B (AMB) is recommended in combination with flucy-tosine for the treatment of cryptococcosis (16). AMB is pur-ported to mediate its antifungal effects by binding to cell membrane sterols and damaging the cell membrane (1). Ad-ditionally, AMB may function as an immunomodulator be-cause it can promote nitric oxide release (14, 19), enhance superoxide production (21, 22), affect cytokine secretion (23), and interact with Toll-like receptors (17). We have previousl