Screening for in vitro antifungal activities of some indole alkaloids.

Several indole alkaloids were tested by the agar dilution technique on a panel of human pathogenic fungi, yeasts, and dermatophytes. Our results indicate that the most active compounds possess a beta-carboline skeleton and that the presence of a 3-4 double bond enhances the activity. Our results also show that antifungal activities are not linked to the cytotoxic, antimicrobial or antiparasitic properties.