Candidiasis : predisposing factors, prevention, diagnosis and alternative treatment

Candidiasis is the most common opportunistic yeast infection. Candida species and other microorganisms are involved in this complicated fungal infection, but Candida albicans continues to be the most prevalent. In the past two decades, it has been observed an abnormal overgrowth in the gastrointestinal, urinary and respiratory tracts, not only in immunocompromised patients, but also related to nosocomial infections and even in healthy individuals. There is a widely variety of causal factors that contribute to yeast infection which means that candidiasis is a good example of a multifactorial syndrome. Due to rapid increase in the incidence in these infections, this is the subject of numerous studies. Recently, the focus of attention is the treatment and, above all, the prevention of those complications. The diagnosis of candidiasis could become quite complicated. Prevention is the most effective “treatment,” much more than eradication of the yeast with antifungal agents. There are several aspects to consider in the daily routine that can provide a strength protection. However, a therapeutic approach is necessary when the infection is established, and therefore, other alternatives should be explored. This review provides an overview on predisposition factors, prevention and diagnosis of candidiasis, highlighting alternative approaches for candidiasis treatment.The authors are grateful to Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for N. Martins grant (SFRH/BD/87658/2012), L. Barros researcher contract under "Programa Compromisso com Ciencia-2008'' and financial support to the research center CIMO (strategic project PEst-OE/AGR/UI0690/2011)

Activity of essential oils from spices against Staphylococcus spp. isolated from bovine mastitis

Avaliou-se a atividade antimicrobiana dos óleos essenciais (OE) de Origanum vulgare (orégano), Thymus vulgaris (tomilho), Lippia graveolens (lipia), Zingiber officinale (gengibre), Salvia officinalis (sálvia), Rosmarinus officinalis (alecrim) e Ocimum basilicum (manjericão), e de suas frações majoritárias, carvacrol e timol, frente a 32 isolados de Staphylococcus spp, oriundos de rebanhos leiteiros bovinos. A concentração inibitória mínima (CIM) e a concentração bactericida mínima foram determinadas por meio da técnica de microdiluição em caldo. Orégano, tomilho e lípia (Orégano Mexicano) apresentaram atividade antimicrobiana similar, médias geométrica de CIM de 1600µg mL-1; 1564µg mL-1; 1562µg mL-1, respectivamente, no entanto menos ativos que carvacrol, 584µg mL-1 e thymol, 427µg mL-1. Isolados com diferentes perfis de susceptibil idade aos antimicrobianos usados no tratamento de mastite bovina, quando subagrupados, foram inibidos por concentrações semelhantes de OE . Estes resultados confirmam a atividade antimicrobiana de OE e algumas frações majoritárias