Inhitory effects and citotoxicity of an antifungal mixture on formation and hyphal growth of Candida albicans using a Caenorhabditis elegans infection model.

CORDISCO, ESTEFANÍA; VRANYCH, C; HERNANDEZ CRAVERO, B.; DE MENDOZA, DIEGO; SORTINO, MAXIMILIANO; SVETAZ, LAURA

Rosario

Congreso; 2nd Latin American Worm Meeting; 2020

UNR-CONICET

Candidiasis is an opportunistic infection, which affects the skin and mucous membranes in a large number of individuals. Candida albicans is a predominantly nosocomial fungal pathogen that causes complications, such as mucosal disease and deep-seated mycoses, in inmunocompromised individuals.1 The use of commercial antifungals is limited, among other things, by the generation of host toxicity and the low spectrum of action. That is why alternative therapies are sought using plants due to their various biological activities. In our working group, we have identified a ternary mixture composed of plant extracts of Scoparia dulcis (Sd) and Zuccagnia punctata (Zp) and Itraconazole (ITZ), with an optimal in vitro antifungal activity against Candida albicans. The objective of this work was to use Caenorhabditis elegans as an in vivo model to evaluate the antifungal activity and the cytotoxicity of this mixture. To investigate the effects of the mixture on the virulence of C. albicans, the nematodes were first infected with the fungus.2 After infection, the nematodes were treated with the mixture and the percentage of survivors was determined in comparison to the control without treatment. It was observed that after four days all control infected nematodes die and that 87% of infected nematodes that were treated with the mixture survive. Cytotoxicity was also analyzed by incubating uninfected nematodes with the mixture. It was observed that 93.33% of the nematodes survived, indicating that the mixture was not toxic. C. elegans proved to be a powerful tool for the study of antifungal activity and cititoxicity. The antifungal mixture obtained could be an interesting alternative for candidiasis treatments, significantly reducing inconvenience for the host.