Onychomycosis is a common fungal infection affecting nails. The primary cause for onychomycosis is dermatophytes, while Candida species have emerged as second-line pathogens. Onychomycosis due to Candida (candidal onychomycosis) is increasingly found in individuals having defective immunity consequential to aging, diabetes mellitus, vascular diseases, HIV infection and drug therapies such as immunosuppressives and broad-spectrum antibiotics. Breached local immunity at the nail complex due to trauma, chronic exposure to moisture and chemicals including smoke, detergents, soap, etc., also contribute to candidal onychomycosis. Adhesion, filamentation, secretion of extracellular enzymes and the development of antifungal resistance are some of the virulence mechanisms of Candida species associated with onychomycosis. Diagnosis of onychomycosis depends on history and clinical examination, direct microscopic investigation, mycological culture and histopathology. Restoration of immune defenses, elimination of fungi using appropriate drug therapy and improvement of nail hygiene with the removal of predisposing factors are key aspects in the management of candidal onychomycosis.
Background/Aims: The polyphenols catechins and theaflavins in black tea have been shown to possess many medicinal properties, including anticancer activity and some antifungal characteristics, but there have been few studies of their anti-Candida activity. In this paper we report the results of our study of the anti-Candida activity of tea polyphenols. Methods: The effects of 4 different concentrations of catechins and theaflavins were evaluated on 5 isolates each of 5 Candida species employing an agar diffusion growth inhibition assay. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the polyphenols against C. albicans was determined. The post-antifungal effect (PAFE) of the polyphenols for C. albicans was investigated. C. albicans cells exposed to polyphenols were studied using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Results: Both polyphenols showed anti-Candida activity against all tested Candida species and demonstrated a MIC of 6.25 mg/ml for C. albicans. C. glabrata was found to be the most sensitive species followed by C. parapsilosis, C. albicans, C. krusei and C. tropicalis (p < 0.05 for all). Significant intraspecies variations in sensitivity were noted among C. parapsilosis and C. tropicalis (p < 0.001) for both polyphenols. Theaflavins displayed standard PAFE while catechins showed a paradoxical PAFE with all isolates of C. albicans. SEM revealed considerable cell wall damage of C. albicans cells exposed to the polyphenols. Conclusion: The study reveals for the first time the anti-Candida properties of black tea polyphenols that may find therapeutic applications in future.
Introduction Different systems of traditional medicine of the Indian subcontinent, have used Acacia chundra Willd, Adhatoda vasica Nees., Mimusops elengi L., Piper nigrum L., Pongamia pinnata L. Pirerre, Quercus infectoria Olivier., Syzygium aromaticum L., Terminalia chebula Retz., Zingiber officinale Roscoe., individually or in combinations, to cure oral diseases. Objective To investigate the oral hygiene and gingival health benefits of toothpaste formulated with a mixture of the above herbs (15% w/w). Methods Sixty participants (test n=30, control n=30, mean age 23.6±2.25 vs 23.9±3.2 years) who fulfilled the selection criteria and had similar plaque (1.734±0.29 vs 1.771±0.33) and percentage of sites with gingival bleeding (19.6±7 vs 20.7±8) were studied in a double blind randomised clinical trial. Brushing instructions to all and a scaling for those with calculus were provided two weeks before baseline examination. One ml of resting saliva was collected to ascertain anaerobic (SAnB) and aerobic (SAB) bacterial counts, plaque index (PI), percentage sites with bleeding on probing (BOP) and pocket depth (PD) (at 6 sites/tooth) were recorded at baseline, followed by home use of the allocated toothpaste (test or placebo) twice a day for 12 weeks. Measurements were repeated at 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Results PI, BOP and SAnB decreased significantly in the test group at 4, 8, and 12 weeks compared to baseline measurements (W ilcoxon-Signed Rank Test, p<0.01). There was no statistically significant improvement in PI, BOP, and SAnB in the placebo group. Conclusions Our study indicates the beneficial effects of this herbal toothpaste (Sudantha ®) on oral hygiene and gingival health variables when compared with the placebo. Further clinical trials using patients with gingivitis are necessary to confirm the therapeutic benefits of this herbal toothpaste.
Introduction Curd is a potential source of probiotic Lactobacillus species.
Antimicrobial activity of Tephrosia purpurea (Linn.) Pers. and Mimusops elengi (Linn.) against some clinical bacterial isolates J.Natn.Sci.Foundation Sri Lanka 2009 37 (2):139-145 was performed with water extracts of leaves, pods and roots using the 'disc diffusion bioassay'. Subsequently, the antimicrobial activity of ethanolic root and leaf extracts against the above three standard isolates and clinical isolates of two strains of Staphylococcus, two strains of Pseudomonas and nine coliforms were tested using the 'well method'. The active extracts were subjected to the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) agar dilution method, to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration of each extract. Further, the effect of plant maturity was tested on the antimicrobial activity of T. purpurea. In addition, ethonolic extracts were prepared from the bark of M. elengi and tested for its antimicrobial activity against the above bacterial isolates.Ethanolic root extracts of T. purpurea were found to be active against P. aeruginosa, two other Pseudomonas strains and two coliform strains. Ethanolic leaf extracts and all the water extracts showed no activity against any of the isolates. The bark extract of M. elengi showed activity against three Staphylococcus isolates including S. aureus. The MIC of ethanolic root extracts of T. purpurea and bark extract of M. elengi were both found to be 128mg/L. There were no differences between the antimicrobial activities of the extracts of T. purpurea plants at different maturity levels.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.