Summary of the announcement at the 7th Conference of Mycology
Mamoucha S. (1), Liapis V. (2), Prombona A. (1)
(1) Institute of Biosciences and Applications, National Centre for Scientific Research DEMOKRITOS, 15341 Ag. Paraskevi, Attiki
(2) Army Share Fund Hospital, Monis Petrakis 10-12, 11521 Athens, Attiki
Introduction: Fungal infections (F.I.) are of great interest due to the increasing rates observed in patients with immunosuppression. Among the hospital-acquired infections F.I. are the fifth leading cause for patients in the Intensive Care Unit. Candida albicans strains are one of the most common pathogenic fungi which are isolated at a proportion of approximately 70% from clinical samples. Since the administration of antifungal medication results in resistant strains, there is an urgent need to screen for new antimicrobial compounds. Scope: In the present work, essential oils and extracts of plants, which are used as natural preservatives in the field of Cosmetology, were studied for their antifungal activity. Materials and Methods: Plant essential oils and extracts were from the upper part of plant tissues. Bioactivity tests were performed by two methods: Disk Diffusion Assay and Agar Well Diffusion Assay. Ten clinical strains of C. albicans were used as test-microorganisms. Results: Only essential oils presented antifungal activity. Oils from Citrus species were the most active against C. Albicans, as they exhibited greater inhibition activity.
Acknowledgement: The research is carried out in collaboration with the company of natural products Mellifora which provided the plant extracts and all necessary financial support.
Responsible for work: Mamoucha Stavroula, email: smamouha@yahoo.com, tel: +306932476042