A Complete Guide to Anti-infective Classes: Including Anti-Fungals and Antibiotics

Anti-infectives are a cornerstone of modern therapeutics, covering antibiotics, anti-viral drugs, antifungals, and antiparasitics that collectively reduce mortality, shorten hospital stays, and enable complex care such as surgery and cancer chemotherapy. 

Why Anti-infectives Matter

Today, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) may have overtaken infectious diseases to account for nearly two-thirds of global mortality and morbidity, according to the latest paper on global burden of diseases. 

However, infectious diseases still affect millions of people around the world.  For example, lower respiratory infections remained the world’s most deadly communicable disease other than COVID-19, ranked as the fifth leading cause of death in 2021. And TB is the world’s leading cause of death from a single infectious agent and among the top 10 causes of death.

From a market and access perspective, global anti-infectives sales exceeded USD 128 billion in 2024 and are projected to approach or exceed USD 180–196 billion by early next decade, driven by rising infection prevalence and expanding healthcare coverage. Companies such as Mankind Pharma have built extensive anti-infective portfolios, with anti-infectives contributing about 15% of its domestic sales and forming a core pillar of its acute-care offering in India.

Core Classes of Anti-infectives

Anti-infectives are typically grouped by the type of pathogen they target, enabling more rational selection based on microbiology and clinical presentation. The four principal categories are antibiotics (bacterial), antiviral drugs (viral), antifungals (fungal), and antiparasitics (anti-protozoal and anti-helminthic).

• Antibiotics: Used for bacterial infections such as pneumonia, skin and soft tissue infections, and urinary tract infections; These may be broad-spectrum (effective against many bacteria) or narrow-spectrum (targeted action), depending on susceptibility profiles.
• Antiviral drugs: Designed to inhibit viral replication at different stages of the viral lifecycle (entry, uncoating, replication, assembly, or release) and used for infections like HIV, hepatitis B and C, herpes, and influenza.
• Antifungal agents: Target fungal cell membranes or cell wall synthesis and are used against candidiasis, aspergillosis, dermatophytosis, and invasive mould infections.
• Antiparasitics: Focused on protozoa and helminths causing malaria, amoebiasis, helminthiasis, and other parasitic diseases.

Mankind Pharma’s portfolio spans these categories, with branded antibiotics such as amoxicillin–clavulanic acid combinations (e.g., Moxikind CV) commonly used for respiratory, skin, and urinary tract infections in Indian clinical practice.

Antiviral Drugs: Mechanisms and Use

Antiviral drugs do not eliminate viruses directly, but suppress their replication to help the immune system control infection and reduce disease severity. Most agents target viral enzymes or proteins—such as polymerases, proteases, or neuraminidase—or interfere with viral entry or release from host cells.

Key clinical roles of antiviral drugs include:

• Management of chronic infections such as HIV and hepatitis B/C, where long-term viral suppression reduces complications, transmission, and mortality.
• Treatment or prophylaxis of acute infections such as influenza, where antivirals can shorten symptom duration and lower the risk of complications when used early.

Strategic use of antivirals—alongside vaccination and infection control—is vital for health-system resilience and continuity of care during outbreaks and pandemics.

Antifungal Antibiotic and Antifungal Agents

Antifungal antibiotic and other antifungal agents form a distinct but increasingly critical subset of anti-infectives, especially as invasive fungal infections and antifungal resistance rise globally. Clinically relevant antifungal classes include azoles, echinocandins, polyenes, and allylamines, each acting on different aspects of fungal cell structure or metabolism.

Common use cases include:

• Superficial infections such as dermatophytosis and candidal vulvovaginitis, often managed with topical or oral azoles and allylamines.
• Invasive infections like candidemia and aspergillosis in immunocompromised patients, where systemic echinocandins, azoles, or amphotericin B–based regimens are standard.

Rising antifungal resistance adds urgency. For example, the emerging pathogen Candida auris has shown high levels of resistance to fluconazole and increasing resistance to echinocandins, with U.S. cases tripling between 2019 and 2021 and over 80% of isolates resistant to common azoles in some datasets. This underscores the need for robust antifungal stewardship and access to a diversified antifungal armamentarium in hospital formularies.

Product Perspective

Mankind Pharma exemplifies how a diversified portfolio can address both acute and chronic needs while remaining accessible in price-sensitive markets. The company offers more than 500 pharmaceutical products, with anti-infectives alone accounting for about 15% of domestic sales and supported by over 730 scientists across seven R&D centres focused on advanced formulations and generics. Its distribution footprint, with strong coverage in Tier II–IV cities and rural India, improves access to antibiotics, anti-viral drugs, and antifungal agents for a large underserved population base.

Responsible Use and Stewardship

While anti-infectives have transformed modern medicine, inappropriate or excessive use has driven an acceleration in antimicrobial resistance across bacteria, viruses, and fungi. Resistant infections increase length of stay, cost of care, and mortality, and necessitate the use of more expensive or toxic therapies, creates a significant financial strain on health systems and patients.

Key stewardship priorities for healthcare organisations and prescribers include:

• Ensuring microbiology-guided selection of antibiotics, antiviral drugs, and antifungals wherever feasible, and avoiding unnecessary broad-spectrum usage.
• Emphasising adherence and complete treatment courses to reduce relapse and resistance, particularly in community settings where follow-up is challenging.
• Integrating surveillance data, infection prevention protocols, and continuing medical education to keep prescribing patterns aligned with evolving resistance profiles.

Pharmaceutical manufacturers like Mankind Pharma contribute by supplying quality-assured, affordable anti-infectives, investing in R&D for new and improved formulations, and supporting clinician education on rational use across India’s diverse healthcare landscape. In a healthcare ecosystem where infectious threats and resistance are both intensifying, a structured understanding of anti-infectives—especially the nuanced roles of antiviral drugs and antifungal antibiotic agents—is now essential for clinical, operational, and commercial decision-makers alike.

FAQs: Core classes of anti-infectives

What are the main classes of anti-infectives?

Anti-infectives are medicines used to prevent or treat infections caused by pathogenic microorganisms, and are broadly classified into antibiotics, antiviral drugs, antifungal agents, and antiparasitic drugs. Each class targets a different group of pathogens: bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites, respectively.

How do antibiotics differ from other anti-infectives?

Antibiotics specifically target bacterial infections and can be either broad-spectrum (acting on many bacteria) or narrow-spectrum (acting on selected species). They are used for conditions such as pneumonia, urinary tract infections, and skin and soft tissue infections.  A course of antibiotics should always be completed as prescribed to reduce relapse and resistance.

What are antiviral drugs and when are they used?

Antiviral drugs inhibit viral replication inside host cells rather than directly destroying the virus. They are used to treat infections such as HIV, hepatitis B and C, influenza, and herpes, often by blocking stages such as viral entry, uncoating, or genome replication.

How do antifungal agents work?

Antifungal agents are used to treat fungal infections by disrupting fungal cell membranes or interfering with growth and replication processes. They are used for both superficial infections (such as dermatophytosis and mucocutaneous candidiasis) and serious invasive infections in immunocompromised patients.

What are antiparasitic drugs and which infections do they target?

Antiparasitic drugs are anti-infectives that act against parasitic organisms, including protozoa and helminths. They are used to manage conditions such as malaria, amoebiasis, and various helminthic (worm) infestations affecting the gastrointestinal tract and other organs.

Why is correct classification of anti-infectives clinically important?

Using the wrong class (for example, an antibiotic for a viral infection) is ineffective and contributes to drug resistance and avoidable adverse effects. Proper classification helps clinicians align therapy with the causative pathogen, improving outcomes while supporting antimicrobial stewardship.