The Antifungal Activities of Syzygium aromaticum and Alpinia purpurata Extracts Against Candida krusei: Bioactivity Tests, Molecular Modeling, and Toxicity Tests

BACKGROUND

Candida krusei is the cause of the fungal infection candidiasis, which has a high mortality rate. Intrinsic resistance to fluconazole can cause the failure of Krusei candidiasis treatment. Therefore, it is necessary to find alternative drugs to eliminate the fungus. Extracts of Syzygium aromaticum and Alpinia purpurata have been proven to be alternative solutions for treating Candida krusei resistance.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to explore the active compounds Syzygium aromaticum and Alpinia purpurata as treatments against Candida krusei through bioactivity tests, molecular modeling, and toxicity tests.

METHODS

Determination of antifungal activity with the agar well diffusion and microbroth dilution method. Molecular modeling was conducted using the following software: Marvin Sketch, LigandScout  4.4.5, AutoDock ver 4.2.6, PyMOL, LigPlus, MOE ver 2008.

RESULT

Bioactivity test results of the two natural extracts against C. krusei ATCC 6258, it was found that the S. aromaticum and A. purpurata extracts have MIC50 values of 0.031 μg/mL and 1.435x105 μg/mL. The molecular modeling found that the compounds Benzotriazole, 1-(4-methyl-3-nitrobenzoyl)-, 1,3,4-Eugenol Acetate, Stigmasta-5,22-dien-3-ol, acetate (3 beta)- and Farnesyl acetate from the two natural extracts, interacts with the active site of the enzyme lanosterol-14-α-demethylase with a binding energy of -8.91, -6.04, -13.53, and -7.15 kcal/mol. The oral acute toxicity test of S. aromaticum and A. purpurata extracts proved that the LD50 was >6000 mg/kg BW and >8000 mg/kg BW. The acute dermal toxicity test of the two extracts showed that the LD50 was >6000 mg/kg BW.

CONCLUSION

S. aromaticum and A. purpurata extracts have been proven to be alternative solutions for treating Candida krusei resistance.

and evaluation of its effects on peritoneal adhesion: Investigating the role of inflammatory cytokines, oxidative factors, and fibrosis and angiogenesis biomarkers

The dried flower bud of Syzygium aromaticum L. (S. aromaticum) (Myrtaceae), cloves, have been used for their analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities. Peritoneal adhesion (PA) is the most common complication of abdominal and pelvic surgeries, which causes significant adverse effects and severe economic burden. The present study aimed to evaluate the preventive effect of S. extract (SAE) on PA formation in a rat model. Male Wistar 8-week-old rats were randomly divided into sham, control (received vehicle), and treatment (0.25%, 0.5%, and 1% w/v of SAE) groups. The adhesion and related factors were examined using the Nair scoring system and immunological and biochemical kits for the levels of inflammatory cytokines [interleukin (IL)-6 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α], growth factors [transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)], oxidative [nitric oxide (NO) and malondialdehyde (MDA)], and anti-oxidative [glutathione (GSH)] factors. Our results figured out that the adhesion score and IL-6, TNF-α, TGF-β1, VEGF, NO, and MDA levels were significantly increased, but the GSH level was decreased in the control group compared to the sham group (p < 0.001-0.05). On the other hand, the 0.25% SAE group had a lower adhesion score, and IL-6, TNF-α, TGF-β1, VEGF, NO, and MDA levels were significantly decreased compared with the vehicle group, and the level of GSH was increased (p < 0.001-0.05). SAE could efficiently reduce adhesion score and regulate inflammatory cytokines, oxidative and anti-oxidative factors, and biomarkers of fibrosis and angiogenesis. Therefore, clove extract can be considered a potential candidate for PA management.

Quantification through TLC-densitometric analysis, repellency and anticholinesterase activity of the homemade extract of Indian cloves

The rise of the mosquitoes-transmitted diseases, like dengue, zika and chikungunya in Brazil in the last years has increased concerns on protection against mosquitoes bites. However, the prohibitive prices of the commercially available repellents for the majority of the Brazilian population has provoked a search for cheaper solutions, like the use of the homemade ethanolic extract of Indian clove (Syzygium aromaticum L.) as repellent, which has been reported as quite efficient by the local press. In order to verify this, we performed here the quantification of the main components of this extract through high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC)-densitometry and evaluated its efficiency as a repellent and its acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibition capacity. Our results have proved HPTLC-densitometry as an efficient and appropriate method for this quantification and confirmed the repellency activity, as well as its capacity of AChE inhibition.