Polyether Antibiotics

Structural features of Polyether antibiotics include an exterior alkyl backbone that confers their lipophilic characteristics and an oxygen-rich internal cavity that can bind metal ions. They affect the targeted cells by changing the permeability of cellular membranes to cationic metal species that lead to changes in Na+/K+ gradient and an increase in the osmotic pressure inside the cell, causing swelling, vacuolization, and ultimately death of the bacterial cell. These antibiotics show a broad spectrum of bioactivity including antibacterial (both for drug-sensitive and drug-resistant bacteria), antifungal, anti-parasitic, antiviral and tumor cell cytotoxicity.