Abstract
Mycoses caused by Candida and Cryptococcus species, associated with the advent of antifungal drug resistance have emerged as major health problems. Improved control measures and innovative therapies are needed. This paper describes results from the screening of bio-guided fractionated extracts alone and combinations of Terminalia catappa, Terminalia mantaly and Monodora tenuifolia harvested in Cameroon. Crude ethanolic, hydro-ethanolic and aqueous extracts and bio-guided fractions were screened for antifungal activity against isolates of C. albicans, C. glabrata, C. parapsilosis and Cr. neoformans and the reference strain C. albicans NR-29450. Minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were determined using a broth micro dilution method according to the Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). Time kill kinetics of extracts alone and in combination were also evaluated. Extracts from T. mantaly stem bark were the most active with the best MIC values ranging from 0.04 mg/mL to 0.16 mg/mL. Synergistic interactions were observed with combinations of sub-fractions from M. tenuifolia, T. mantaly and T. catappa. Combination of sub-fractions from M. tenuifolia and T. mantaly (C36/C12) showed synergistic interaction and fungicidal effect against four out of five tested yeasts. These results support further investigation of medicinal plant extracts alone and in combination as starting points for the development of alternative antifungal therapy.
Highlights
The knowledge of the epidemiology and pathogenesis of yeasts affecting humans has increased in the last three decades [1,2,3,4]
Results from the preliminary screening of antifungal activity enabled the selection of 23 extracts based on their inhibitory percentages against clinical isolates and the reference Candida albicans NR-29450 (≥75% against at least one of the tested yeasts)
Change in minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values in liquid medium ranging from 0.04 mg/mL to 40.0 mg/mL was observed as described in
Summary
The knowledge of the epidemiology and pathogenesis of yeasts affecting humans has increased in the last three decades [1,2,3,4]. Many conditions have promoted the increase of opportunistic fungal infections in humans, especially candidiasis and cryptococcosis [1,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12]. Candidiasis is the most common fungal infection in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent persons [10,13,14,15,16,17]. Invasive candidiasis is responsible for the high mortality among intensive care patients with a frequency of 40%–75% [3,9,15,18]. Some other pathogenic yeasts are emerging, including C. famata, C. guilliermondii, C. kefyr and more recently
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
