Author(s):
Martins, Natália ; Costa-Oliveira, Sofia ; Melo, Luís D.R. ; Ferreira, Isabel C.F.R. ; Azeredo, Joana ; Henriques, Mariana ; Silva, Sónia
Date: 2017
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10198/15070
Origin: Biblioteca Digital do IPB
Project/scholarship:
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/SFRH/SFRH%2FBD%2F87658%2F2012/PT;
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/6817 - DCRRNI ID/PEst-OE%2FAGR%2FUI0690%2F2014/PT;
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/COMPETE/PTDC%2FSAU-MIC%2F119069%2F2010/PT;
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/COMPETE/RECI%2FBBB-EBI%2F0179%2F2012/PT;
info:eu-repo/grantAgreement/FCT/3599-PPCDT/PEst-OE%2FEQB%2FLA0023%2F2013/PT;
Description
Medicinal plants and their botanical formulations have gained a pivotal attention among scientific researchers mainly due to its action as health promoters. Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra L.) constitutes a great example, with an increasingly evidenced antimicrobial potential. Opportunistic yeast infections constitute an alarming public health problem, highly exacerbated by the inefficacy of antifungal drugs and the increase of drug-resistant microorganisms, being Candida species one of the most common invaders. The present work aims to assess Candida glabrata and Candida albicans susceptibility to G. glabra methanol: water extract by using flow cytometry and transmission electron microscopy techniques. After 5 min, licorice extract (1.5 mg/mL) altered Candida membrane potential. Within an hour, it induced primary damages on Candida species cells, causing cell cytoplasm disorganization with high evidence of cell membrane invaginations, making cells turgid. Thus, based on the current findings, licorice extract seems to be a promising anti-Candida agent, without presenting any toxic potential at the effective concentrations used.
The authors are grateful to Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) for N. Martins grant (SFRH/BD/87658/2012) and financial support to the research centre CIMO (strategic project PEst-OE/AGR/UI0690/2014). This work was also supported by the Programa Operacional, Fatores de competitividade – COMPETE and by national funds through FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia on the scope of the projects FCT PTDC/SAU-MIC/119069/2010, RECI/EBB-EBI/0179/2012 and PEst-OE/EQB/LA0023/2013. The authors thank the Project “BioHealth – Biotechnology and Bioengineering approaches to improve health quality”, Ref. NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000027, co-funded by the Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON.2–O Novo Norte), QREN, FEDER.
