Therapeutic Potential of Himalayan Ayurvedic Herbs Against Multidrug-Resistant Fungal Pathogens

Abstract

AbstractFungal pathogens are commonly opportunistic to human society and cause different superficial as well as systemic infections which are responsible for morbidity and mortality of mainly immunocompromised patients such as organ transplants, diabetes, burn, chemotherapy, cancer, and HIV. The infections caused by nonfilamentous fungi (Candida albicans and non-albicans) are responsible for 50–70% of all infections and cause the fourth leading bloodstream infection worldwide every year. The filamentous fungi (i.e., Aspergillus species) mainly affect respiratory system infection. There are only four classes of clinically approved antifungal drugs (i.e., polyene, azoles, allylamines, and echinocandins) used to treat fungal infection. However, in recent decades, widespread and prolonged usage of antibiotics against opportunistic fungal infections led to a significant increase in the emergence of multidrug resistance globally. The main mechanism of antifungal resistance includes alternation of cell wall biosynthesis pathway (ergosterol pathway), overexpression of membrane transporters (Cdr1p and CaMdr1p), modification of enzymatic pathway, and overexpression of genetic material. Further, due to the steep growth of fungal infection in immunocompromised patients and a limited number of well-known antifungal drugs having several side effects urgently demands for the identification of new compounds with potent antifungal activity. In this regard, the search for new antifungal agents from medicinal plants is an attractive alternative to providing new remedies that can be combined with currently available antifungal agents. The medicinal plants of Himalayan regions have a diverse group of medicinal plants having novel bioactive compounds with unique properties. So, this chapter primarily focuses on the therapeutic properties of Himalayan medicinal plants and their antifungal activity against various fungal pathogens.KeywordsAntifungal infectionsMultidrug resistanceAntifungal agentsMedicinal plantsBioactive compounds