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Antifungal activity of essential oils and their synergy with fluconazole against drug-resistant strains of Aspergillus fumigatus and Trichophyton rubrum

  • Applied Microbial and Cell Physiology
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Abstract

The aim of this study was to screen certain plant essential oils and active compounds for antifungal activity and their in vitro interaction with fluconazole against drug-resistant pathogenic fungi. The methods employed in this work included disc diffusion, broth macrodilution, time kill methods and checkerboard microtiter tests. Oil compositions were evaluated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. Transmission electron microscopy was used to assess the effect of essential oils on cellular structures of test fungi. Test fungal strains exhibited resistance to at least two drugs (fluconazole and itraconazole). Among the 21 essential oils or active compounds tested, ten showed promising antifungal activity. GC-MS analysis revealed the presence of major active compounds in the essential oils used. Cinnamaldehyde showed the most promising antifungal activity and killing potency against Aspergillus fumigatus MTCC2550 and Trichophyton rubrum IOA-9. Cinnamaldehyde showed strongest synergy with fluconazole against A. fumigatus and T. rubrum by reducing the minimum inhibitory concentration of fluconazole up to 8-fold. Zones of lysis of the cell wall and cell membrane appeared to be where cinnamaldehyde acted on fungi. This study highlights the broad spectrum antifungal activity of essential oils and active compounds and their synergy with fluconazole against drug-resistant fungi.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge Sophisticated Analytical Instrument Facility of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai, for conducting the GC-MS analysis of essential oils. We are also thankful to Electron Microscopy Division, Sophisticated Analytical Instrument Facility at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, for making the transmission electron microscope available for ultrastructural analysis of the test fungi. We are thankful to Prof. John Pichtel, Ball State University, USA for the critical reading of manuscript. We are also thankful to the University Grants Commission, New Delhi, for providing scholarship through AMU, Aligarh, to MSA Khan during the course of this study.

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  1. Department of Agricultural Microbiology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, 202002, India

    Mohd Sajjad Ahmad Khan & Iqbal Ahmad

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  1. Mohd Sajjad Ahmad Khan
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  2. Iqbal Ahmad
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Correspondence to Iqbal Ahmad.

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Khan, M.S.A., Ahmad, I. Antifungal activity of essential oils and their synergy with fluconazole against drug-resistant strains of Aspergillus fumigatus and Trichophyton rubrum . Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 90, 1083–1094 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-011-3152-3

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