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Evaluation of antifungal activity of cinnamaldehyde against Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii

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Abstract

Cryptococcosis is a potentially fatal fungal disease which has aggrandized with the emergence of AIDS and antifungal resistance. The currently used antifungals lack the broad-spectrum activity and result in several toxicities during long treatment regimens. Thus, the present study aims to evaluate the antifungal activity of cinnamaldehyde against Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii, the etiological agent of the disease. Quantitative and qualitative in vitro fungal susceptibilities were carried out by minimum inhibitory concentration assay, flow cytometric analysis, and confocal microscopy. Micromorphological alterations were studied through scanning electron and light microscopies. “In vivo” antifungal efficacy of cinnamaldehyde was assessed. Cinnamaldehyde showed antifungal activity against C. neoformans in a dose-dependent manner. A concentration of 1.37 mg/mL of cinnamaldehyde was found to be inhibitory and fungicidal while the low concentration (0.68 mg/mL) was found to induce micromorphological changes and formation of giant/titan-like cells in this pathogen. The reparative activity of cinnamaldehyde and its ability to prolong the life even after the advent of cryptococcal meningitis in mice was also noticed. This study suggests potent anti-cryptococcal activity of cinnamaldehyde. Though, it has a couple of limitations like allergy and low bioavailability. However, these problems can be circumvented by developing suitable analogs of the compound. It, therefore, could be used as a therapeutic option against cryptococcosis and cryptococcal meningitis. Moreover, the evaluation of its pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties is desirable.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Principal, Mahila Mahavidyalaya for providing the infrastructure facilities. The authors also wish to thank DST-SERB, New Delhi, for providing grant (EMR/2016/001396). One of the authors, Neelabh, would like to thank Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) for providing Senior Research Fellowship. However, this fellowship was not used in any way to fund this work. The authors are also thankful to Dr. Radha Chaube and Sandhya Sharma for photomicrography and Dr. Biplob Koch and Mr. Nishant Kumar Rana for flow cytometry studies and Ankita Kumari for biochemical studies.

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  1. Department of Zoology, MMV, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, 221005, India

    Neelabh & Karuna Singh

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  1. Neelabh
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Correspondence to Karuna Singh.

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Neelabh, Singh, K. Evaluation of antifungal activity of cinnamaldehyde against Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii. Folia Microbiol 65, 973–987 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12223-020-00806-4

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