antifungal activity of essential oils extracted from plants against fluconazole-susceptible and -resistant .

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

is the most common cause of candidal infections. Various studies have shown drug resistance among isolates; thus, it is necessary to discover replacement treatments for infections. In this study, we aimed to compare the effects of different essential oils against azoles-resistant and azoles-susceptible isolates.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Twenty fluconazole-resistant and 20 susceptible isolates obtained from oral, vaginal, and cutaneous tissues of patients with candidiasis were evaluated. The efficacy and minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of , and essential oils against were determined on the basis of a reference method for broth microdilution susceptibility testing of yeasts as suggested by Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI, M27-S4). After inoculation, incubation, and subculturation, the MICs were determined through comparison with the control.

RESULTS

The obtained MICs for , , , , , and were 0.1-0.25 µl/ml (mean: 0.155 µl/ml), 0.625-1.66 µl/ml (mean: 0.93 µl/ml) 0.833-2.0 µl/ml (mean: 1.21 µl/ml), 0.1-0.25 µl/ml (mean: 0.155 µl/ml), 2-4 µl/ml (mean: 3.1 µl/ml), and 1.5-3.0 µl/ml (mean: 2.4 µl/ml), respectively. The results showed that and essential oils were more efficient than other essential oils against species. There were no significant differences between various strains in terms of susceptibility to the essential oils. In addition, there were no significant differences in the MICs of these essential oils against the azoles-resistant and azoles-susceptible isolates.

CONCLUSION

In this study, the anti- effects of six essential oils against both azoles-resistant and azoles-susceptible isolates were similar. Given the documented resistance of different species to synthetic and chemical antifungals, these essential oils are effective replacement treatments for cutaneous and mucosal infections, especially in resistant or recurrent cases.