Antifungal Activities of Ethanolic Extract from the Rhizomes of Mango Ginger (Curcuma amada Roxb.)

Abstract

Fungal skin infections are common disorders in tropical countries, and can be cured with presently available antifungal drugs. Indeed, dermatophytosis can be treated with various Thai medicinal plants containing antifungal substances by topical applying on the lesions. The objective of this study was to investigate antifungal substance from mango ginger rhizome. The extract was isolated by bioassay-guided separation using chromatographic techniques and tested antifungal activity using broth microdilution assay. Labda-8(17),12-diene-15,16-dial was isolated as a main active substance which exhibited anti-der-matophytic activities against Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, and Microsporum gypseum at minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values 0.39 µg/mL and exhibited anti-yeast activity against Candida albicans with MIC 3.13 µg/mL. The effect of labda-8(17),12-diene-15,16-dial at MIC against C. albicans in time-kill curve study revealed that labda-8(17),12-diene-15,16-dial showed fungicidal activity. On the other hand, ketoconazole showed fungistatic activity. Therefore, this antifungal substance would be a promising agent to develop as an antifungal drug in various dosage forms.