Inhibitory effects of different medicinal plants on Candida albicans growth

The objective of this study was to evaluate the in vitro antifungal properties of ethanol extracts and essential oils of medicinal plants from Serbia against Candida albicans (C. albicans) ATCC 10231. Ethanol extracts of fifteen plants were investigated, and their effects were compared with those of three different essential oils. The sensitivity of C. albicans to all plants was tested by the agar dilution method. The assay plates were estimated to contain 300, 150, 75, and 37.5 mu g/ml of active extracts and 100, 50, 25, and 12.5 mu g/ml of active essential oils. Inocula were applied to agar surfaces, giving approximately 10(6) cfu/ml of C. albicans. No inhibitory effects were observed for ethanol extracts of Hypericum perforatum and Salvia officinalis (MIC > 300 mu g/ml). The most effective were the ethanol extract of Aesculus hippocastanum (MIC = 37.5 mu g/ml) and the essential oil of Satureja kitaibelii (MIC = 12.5 mu g/ml). Other plants showed MIC from 25 to 300 mu g/ml. As far as we know, the inhibitory effects of these medicinal plants against the reference strain of C. albicans have not been commonly investigated in our country. Although the essential oil of Satureja kitaibelii shows strong activity against C. albicans, these results need clinical evaluation