amphotericin

American  

[am-fuh-ter-uh-sin] / ˌæm fəˈtɛr ə sɪn /

noun

Pharmacology.

1. an amphoteric antibiotic produced by the bacterium Streptomyces nodosus and used in the treatment of fungal infections.

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Etymology

Origin of amphotericin

First recorded in 1950–55; amphoteric + -in ²

Example Sentences

Gerry Wright, a professor in McMaster's Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, jokes that amphotericin is often referred to as "amphoterrible" because of its severe toxic effects on humans.

From Science Daily • Jan. 22, 2026

Treatment is an IV drug called amphotericin B, followed by usually at least a year of oral antifungals at various different dosages.

From Scientific American • May 22, 2023

Called liposomal amphotericin, it packages the active ingredient within tiny droplets of fat that are infused into the body intravenously, for hours a day, over a week.

From National Geographic • Oct. 19, 2015

The treatment consists of an antifungal drug, either voriconazole or amphotericin B, and sometimes both.

From New York Times • Oct. 9, 2012

House orders amphotericin B, which will treat the fungal infection but—as Adams points out—interact with the antibiotics in a way that will probably leave him deaf as well as blind.

From Time • Mar. 20, 2012