The susceptibility of fungal isolates associated with indoor air of medical institutions to commonly used antifungal agents were investigated using the open plate technique on Sabouraud Dextrose Agar plates. The well in agar diffusion technique was used in determining the antifungal susceptibility. The antifungal agents used were fluconazole and ketoconazole and these drugs were prepared into four concentrations. Result showed reduced antifungal activity as the concentration decreased. Results of fluconazole against the fungal isolates showed that Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Candida sp, and Mucor sp were all sensitive at 5 mg/ml, 2.5 mg/ml, and 1.25 mg/ml while Rhizopus sp was only sensitive at the 5mg/ml concentration. Antifungal activity of ketoconazole showed that Aspergillus flavus, Candida sp, Mucor sp and Rhizopus sp were all sensitive at the 5, 2.5, 1.25 and 0.63 mg/ml concentrations while A. niger was susceptible to ketoconazole at 5 and 2.5 mg/ml concentrations. The MIC of Ketoconazole against Candida sp, Aspergillus flavus, Mucor sp and Rhizopus sp was 0.63 mg/ml. while the MIC of Aspergillus niger was at 2.5 mg/ml. There was highly significant difference (P≤0.05) in the response of the fungal isolates to fluconazole and ketoconazole in all concentrations of the drugs. Result also showed that both drugs were more effective against Candida sp and because of the effectiveness of ketoconazole on other isolates, it is recommended for use in treating mycoses caused by these fungi from this site.
The antimicrobial activity of Zingiber officinale (Ginger) and Curcuma longa (Turmeric) was evaluated using the agar well diffusion method. Different bacterial genera (Staphylococcus Epidermis and Bacillus Sp) which were isolated from the human skin were used as the test isolates. Ginger and turmeric extracted in two different solvents, ethanol and water. Different concentrations of the extracts were prepared and directly applied against bacterial genera to reveal their antimicrobial activity. Ethanol extracts of ginger and turmeric showed greater inhibitory effect against selected Staphylococcus epidermis and Bacillus sp followed by the water extract which had the least inhibitory property. Among the two extracts, ethanol extract of ginger made higher zone of inhibition than turmeric. The overuse of this herbs should be discouraged as they could reduce the microflora of the skin thereby exposing the skin to colonization by pathogens.
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