Speaker
Description
Although antifungal medications are readily available, treating candidiasis still presents a number of difficulties. The growth of drug-resistant strains of Candida is a major concern and requires development of alternative treatment options. Ghanaian medicinal plant research has been explored in herbal medicine for their antifungal properties. However, concerns persist regarding the efficacy of commercial herbal medicines products claiming bioactivity but showed no actual effect when tested, often due to poor quality control, suboptimal processing, or the absence of active compounds. As such, this study sought to identify plants with antifungal properties and determine the antifungal activity of their crude extracts against Candida and as well, determine their phytochemical content.
An ethnobotanical study involving interview with traditional herbalists/healers in Nkoranza South District in the Bono East region of Ghana was conducted to identify and to evaluate medicinal plants with anticandidal properties. Agar well diffusion and broth microdilution assays were used to determine the antifungal activity of each plant extract as well as the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Fungicidal Concentration (MFC) of each extract. Qualitative phytochemical screening was employed for the detection of phytochemical content of the crude extracts. Crude extracts of these plants were tested against clinical Candida isolates obtained from Ashanti region Public Health Reference Laboratory. A standard Candida albicans ATCC 10231 strain was used as standard strain for the experiment.
Three plants were selected after the ethnobotanical study which involved interviewing traditional healers. These were garlic (Allium sativum), clove (Syzygium aromaticum), and Christmas bush (Alchornea cordifolia). Fresh garlic juice demonstrated the strongest antifungal activity, with inhibition zones of 31.7 ± 0.6 mm at 100mg/ml and MFC of 12.50mg/ml for clinical isolate then 41.0 ± 0.0 mm at 100mg/ml and MFC of <0.195mg/ml for Candida albicans ATCC 10231. Clove exhibited anticandidal activity of which MFC of the clinical isolate and the Candida albicans ATCC 10231 were 6.25mg/ml and 3.13mg/ml respectively. Alchornea cordifolia and dry garlic extract showed the least antifungal activity of which MFC for the clinical isolate were 100.00mg/ml and 25.00mg/ml respectively. Phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins, and saponins, compounds known for their antifungal properties.
The findings revealed that fresh garlic juice and clove hold promise as natural antifungal agents, potentially offering alternative or complementary treatments for candidiasis due to their efficacy at relatively low concentrations. Further research, including clinical trials, is needed to validate their safety, effectiveness, and mechanisms of action.