Synergistic Antifungal Activity of Bioactive Phytochemical in Combination with Standard Antifungal Drugs

Abstract

The research work was mainly designed to determine the antifungal activity of curcumin, a potent bioactive phytoconstituent, obtained from Curcuma longa and to explore the possibilities of its use as a combination with commercially available synthetic antifungal drugs for better therapeutic actions. Fluconazole and itraconazole were used as a model drug. Different combinations of curcumin with fluconazole as well as itraconazole was prepared and subjected to an antifungal screening study. The antifungal screening was carried out using Candida albicans fungal strain. The MIC of fluconazole, itraconazole and curcumin was found to be in the range of 32 µg/ml to 64 µg/ml, 8 µg/ml to 32µg/ml and 64 µg/ml to 256 µg/ml respectively. Further, the results of the in-vitro antifungal study performed based on the comparative zone of inhibition measurement of the prepared combination at a concentration of 10 µg/ml were determined. The result of the study indicates that the presence of curcumin significantly increases the antifungal capacity of both fluconazole and itraconazole. The Fractional inhibitory concentration index was measured, and the data thus obtained, states that the increased antifungal activity may be observed due to synergistic or additive effects. Further, the topical sensitivity of the optimized combinations was determined using rabbit vaginal model and were found to be free from any major sign of sensitivity as per as histopathological study concern.