• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.258-262
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• 2007

The antifungal activity of the essential oil fraction from Thymus magus, and its major component thymol, against Candida albicans was investigated in vitro and in vivo. The combined effects of the oils and clotrimazole, a commonly used antifungal drug for treatment of external candidiasis, were evaluated in this study. In experimental vaginal candidiasis the essential oil fraction of T. magnus resulted in relatively milder inhibition of fungal growth following the inoculation of test mice compared to clotrimazole. However, new fungal growth was not detected up to 12 days after cessation of treatment. In contrast, in a similar experiment using clotrimazole, C. albicans was detected in the $12^{th}$ day post-treatment with the sample. This result indicates that T. magnus oil could be a promising drug to control vaginal candidiasis. In checkerboard titer tests, the combination of clotrimazole with the essential oil fraction of T. magus or T. quinquecostatus resulted in significant synergism, with FIC indices between 0.14 and 0.27 against C. albicans, while clotrimazole combined with thymol, the major component of these oils, produced only an additive effect, with FIC indices ranging between 0.50 and 1.00. Thus, the prominent synergistic effects of clotrimazole combined with T. magus essential oil indicate that these compounds may be an effective treatment for C. albicans infections.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.234-239
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• 2011

Glycycoumarin, a 3-arylcoumarine isolated from Glycyrrhizae radix (a family of Leguminosae), is reported to have anti-bacterial activity. However, its antifungal activity is still unknown. In this present study, the antifungal activity of glycycoumarin (GLM) against Candida albicans, a polymorphic fungus was investigated. Possible mechanism such as blocking of the hyphal induction was also analyzed. By the in-vitro susceptibility analysis, GLM showed anticandidal activity, resulting in an almost complete inhibition of the fungal growth at a concentration of 320 ${\mu}g/ml$, which was equivalent to the efficacy of fluconazole at the same dose. In the murine model of disseminated candidiasis GLM enhanced resistance of mice against the disseminated disease (P<0.05), resulting in 60% protection of GLM-treated mice group during a period of 21-day observation. As for its mechanism of the antifungal activity, GLM blocked hyphal production, one of the important of virulence factors by the fungus, from the yeast form of C. albicans (P<0.01). These data indicate that GLM may contribute to the perspectives that focus on the development of a novel agent with antifungal activity specific for C. albicans infection.

• Mycobiology
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.67-72
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• 2013

Pathogenic microbes secrete various enzymes with lipolytic activities to facilitate their survival within the host. Lipolytic enzymes include extracellular lipases and phospholipases, and several lines of evidence have suggested that these enzymes contribute to the virulence of pathogenic fungi. Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans are the most commonly isolated human fungal pathogens, and several biochemical and molecular approaches have identified their extracellular lipolytic enzymes. The role of lipases and phospholipases in the virulence of C. albicans has been extensively studied, and these enzymes have been shown to contribute to C. albicans morphological transition, colonization, cytotoxicity, and penetration to the host. While not much is known about the lipases in C. neoformans, the roles of phospholipases in the dissemination of fungal cells in the host and in signaling pathways have been described. Lipolytic enzymes may also influence the survival of the lipophilic cutaneous pathogenic yeast Malassezia species within the host, and an unusually high number of lipase-coding genes may complement the lipid dependency of this fungus. This review briefly describes the current understanding of the lipolytic enzymes in major human fungal pathogens, namely C. albicans, C. neoformans, and Malassezia spp.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.538-547
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• 2019

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of two well-known natural antioxidants, vitamin C (VC) and vitamin E (VE), on the antifungal activity of honokiol against Candida albicans. The broth microdilution method was employed to test the antifungal activities of honokiol with or without antioxidants in the medium against C. albicans strain. Intracellular reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation were determined by fluorescence staining assay. Mitochondrial dysfunction was assessed by detecting the mitochondrial DNA and the mitochondrial membrane potential. We observed that VC could significantly potentiate the antifungal activities of honokiol while VE reduced the effectiveness of honokiol against C. albicans. In addition, VC accelerated honokiol-induced mitochondrial dysfunction and inhibited glycolysis leading to a decrease in cellular ATP. However, VE could protect against mitochondrial membrane lipid peroxidation and rescue mitochondrial function after honokiol treatment. Our research provides new insight into the understanding of the action mechanism of honokiol and VC combination against C. albicans.

• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.145-156
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• 2023

Many skin diseases are caused by microbial infections. Representative pathogenic fungus and bacterium that cause skin diseases are Candida albicans and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively. Malassezia pachydermatis is a fungus that causes animal skin diseases. In this study, we propose a method for removing pathogenic microorganisms from the skin using relatively safe edible herbal extracts. Herbal extracts were screened for skin health through the removal of pathogenic microorganisms, and combinations for effective utilization of the screened extracts were identified. In this study, among methanol extracts of 240 edible plants, C. albicans, S. aureus, and M. pachydermatis were killed by extracts of 10 plants: Acori Gramineri Rhizoma, Angelicae Tenuissimae Radix, Cinnamomi Cortex, Cinnamomi Ramulus, Impatientis Semen, Magnoliae Cortex, Moutan Cortex Radicis, Phellodendri Cortex, Scutellariae Radix, and Syzygii Flos. By evaluating the synergistic antifungal activities against C. albicans using all 45 possible combinations of these 10 extracts, five new synergistic antifungal combinations, Acori Gramineri Rhizoma with Magnoliae Cortex extracts, Acori Gramineri Rhizoma with Phellodendri Cortex extracts, Angelicae Tenuissimae Radix with Magnoliae Cortex extracts, Magnoliae Cortex with Phellodendri Cortex extracts, and Phellodendri Cortex with Syzygii Flos extracts, were identified. By utilizing the selected extracts and five combinations with synergistic antifungal effects, this work provides materials and methods to develop new and safe methods for treating candidiasis using natural products.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.255-263
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• 2014

Objectives: This study evaluated the fungicidal efficacy of a fumigant containing 20% ortho-phenylphenol against Trichophytone mentagrophytes (T. mentagrophytes), Candida albicans (C. albicans) and Aspergillus niger (A. niger). Methods: Five replicates of each carrier were contaminated by depositing 0.05 mL of each fungal suspension. After drying, two carriers without exposure to the fumigant and three carriers with exposure to the fumigant were left in a sealed room ($25m^3$) at $21{\pm}0.5^{\circ}C$ and $60{\pm}10%$ relative humidity for 15 hours. Immediately after removal from the test room, each carrier was transferred into recovery diluent and suspended, diluted and inoculated. After incubation, the numbers of each colony were counted, and the parameter values (N, T, d) were calculated. Results: The working culture suspension number (N value) of T. mentagrophytes, C. albicans and A. niger were $1.0{\times}10^8$, $1.2{\times}10^8$ and $5.7{\times}10^7CFU/mL$, respectively. All the colony numbers on the carriers exposed to the fumigant (n1, n2, n3) were higher than 0.5N1 (the number of fungal test suspensions by pour plate method), 0.5N2 (the number of fungal test suspensions by filter membrane method) and 0.5N1, respectively. In addition, all mean numbers of test strains recovered on the control-carriers (T value) were over $10^6CFU/mL$. For the fungicidal effect of the fumigant, all numbers of fungal reductions after exposure of the fumigant (d value) were 4 logCFU/mL. Conclusions: The present study showed that fumigant containing 20% ortho-phenylphenol has effective fungicidal activity against T. mentagrophytes, C. albicans and A. niger.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.546-554
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• 2005

We assessed the genetic relations and epidemiological links among bloodstream isolates of Candida albicans, which were obtained from a university hospital over a period of five years. The 54 bloodstream isolates from the 38 patients yielded 14 different karyotypes, 29 different patterns after digestion with SfiI (REAG-S), and 31 different patterns after digestion with BssHII (REAG-B) when analyzed using three different pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) typing methods. In 11 patients with serial blood stream isolates, all strains from each patient had the same PFGE pattern. The dendrograms for all of the strains revealed that the distribution of similarity values ranged from 0.70 to 1.0 in the REAG-S patterns, and from 0.35 to 1.0 in the REAG-B patterns. Overall, the combination of the three different PFGE methods identified 31 distinct types, reflecting the results obtained using the REAG-B alone different. different Five PFGE types were shared among 22 isolates from 12 patients. These types of strains were more frequently associated with central venous catheter-related fungemia than the other 26 type strains $(92\%\;versus\;31\%;\;P<0.005)$. Of five PFGE types, four isolates were determined to be epidemiologically related: each of these types was primarily from two or three patients who had been hospitalized concurrently within the same intensive care unit. Our results suggest that the REAG-B constitutes perhaps the most useful PFGE method for investigating C. albicans candidemia and also shows that a relatively high proportion of C. albicans candidemia may be associated with exogenous acquisition of clonal strains.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.8
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• pp.1185-1188
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• 2010

Previously, papiliocin was isolated from the swallowtail butterfly Papilio xuthus and its antimicrobial activity was suggested. In this study, the antifungal mechanism of papiliocin against Candida albicans was investigated. Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene (DPH) fluorescence analysis indicated that papiliocin disturbed the fungal plasma membrane. Moreover, the assessment of the release of FITC-dextran (FD) from liposomes further demonstrated that the antifungal mechanism of papiliocin could have originated from the pore-forming action and that the radius of the pores was presumed to be anywhere from 2.3 to 3.3 nm.

• The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.91-103
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• 1986

Using imprint cultures and epithelial smears, the density and prevalence of colonization of oral mucosal sites and denture surfaces by Candida albicans has been determined in 28 healthy dentate subjects and 20 denture wearers. With questionnaire, oral and denture examination, the relationship between the carrier rates and several factors; DMFT, oral hygiene index, salivary pH & denture plaque score were studied. But these factors have not significant relationship to the carrier rates. Imprint culture appears to be sensitive technique for detecting candidal carriers and be useful for distinguishing between the healthy carrier state and candidal infection. Cigarette smokers had a significantly increased carrier state (P<0.05) compared with nonsmoker in male dentate subjects. Female were more frequent carriers than male in dentate and denture group, but these differences were not significant. In denture wearers, there was a higher density and frequency of candidal colonization of all mucosal sites sampled, compared with that of healthy dentate group especially anterior palate and posterior palate showed highly significant differences in frequency of candidal colonization (P<0.05). The distribution of Candida albicans is not uniform throughout the mouth. The tongue in the healthy dentate subjects and the impression surfaces of upper dentures are the primary oral reservoirs for the fungus. Overnight wearing of dentures was associated with increased density and frequency of candidal colonization and density.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.56 no.2
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• pp.240-244
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• 2018

There is growing concern about cross infection among the patients to patients, patients to staffs, and tools to patients in healthcare facilities, especially in dentistry. In this study, the most widely used dental impression materials were prepared and the synergy effect of Chlorhexidine and essential oil on antimicrobial activity was examined in the impression materials. Chlorhexidine concentration of 0.1 wt% and 0.5 wt% showed no antimicrobial activity on Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Candida albicans. At 1.0 wt% Chlorhexidine, 0% of E. coli and 34.7% of Candida albicans were survived. Bergamot (Essential oil) concentration of 0.5 wt% and 1.0 wt% showed no antimicrobial activity on E. coli. At 2.0 wt% Bergamot oil, 71.9% of E. coli were survived. Tea tree oil (Essential oil) of 0.5 wt% showed no antimicrobial activity on E. coli. At 1.0 wt% Tea tree oil, 11.2% of E. coli was survived. At 2.0 wt% Tea tree oil, no E. coli was survived. However, no E. coli was survived at the concentration of 0.8 wt% Bergamot with 0.3 wt% Chlorhexidine. At the concentration of 0.8 wt% Tea Tree oil with 0.3 wt% Chlorhexidine, 1.3% of E. coli were survived. The experimental results showed that the synergy effects between Chlorhexidine and essential oils on antimicrobial activity were prominent.