title: Antifungal effect of Trachyspermum ammi against susceptible and fluconazole-resistant strains of Candida albicans.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Trachyspermum ammi (T. ammi) has been known as having many therapeutic properties and its antimicrobial activity has currently received a renewed interest. This study aimed to verify the effectiveness of T. ammi essential oil to inhibit the growth of Candida albicans (C. albicans) strains isolated from HIV(+) patients with oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC).
  
  
  METHODS
  The essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation in a Clevenger apparatus and analyzed by gas chromatography. Susceptibility tests were expressed as inhibition zone by the disk diffusion method and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal fungicidal concentration (MFC) by the broth microdilution method.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thymol (63.4%), p-cymene (19%) and γ-terpinen (16.9%) were found as the most abundant constituents. The disk diffusion results revealed that 67% of oral C. albicans isolates were susceptible, 9% susceptible-dose dependent and 24% resistant to fluconazole. In the broth microdilution method, 68% of isolates were susceptible, 5% susceptible-dose dependent and 27% resistant to fluconazole. The increase in concentration led to a significant reduction in yeasts that were growing in exponential phase. In addition, with increasing in T. ammi oil concentration, the time of remaining cells in lag phase was significantly increased.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study showed that all clinical C. albicans isolates were susceptible to T. ammi essential oil, indicating a significant reduction in the yeast growth in exponential phase.
authors.affiliation: Mycology Research Center, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Azadi street, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sharifzadeh
authors.affiliation: Mycology Research Center, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Azadi street, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address: khosravi@ut.ac.ir.
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Khosravi
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Amol University of Special Modern Technologies, Amol, Iran.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shokri
authors.affiliation: Mycology Research Center, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tehran, Azadi street, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sharafi
mesh_terms: D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000382:microbiology; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019661:Apiaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002180:Candidiasis, Oral / Q000382:microbiology; D025141:Drug Resistance, Fungal; D015725:Fluconazole / Q000494:pharmacology; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D009822:Oils, Volatile / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents; D009822:Oils, Volatile; D010938:Plant Oils; D015725:Fluconazole
keywords: Candida; Candidose oro-pharyngée; Fluconazole; HIV patients; OPC; Thymol; Trachyspermum ammi; VIH