Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> Strains
The pathogenicity of <i>Candida</i> spp. poses a persistent challenge, particularly in hospital environments where these species proliferate and cause opportunistic infections. Many strains have developed resistance to commonly used antifungal agents, including azoles, polyenes, and echi...
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MDPI AG
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Pharmaceutics |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/17/6/687 |
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| author | Thainá dos Santos Dantas Janaina Carla Barbosa Machado Magda Rhayanny Assunção Ferreira Luiz Alberto Lira Soares |
| author_facet | Thainá dos Santos Dantas Janaina Carla Barbosa Machado Magda Rhayanny Assunção Ferreira Luiz Alberto Lira Soares |
| author_sort | Thainá dos Santos Dantas |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The pathogenicity of <i>Candida</i> spp. poses a persistent challenge, particularly in hospital environments where these species proliferate and cause opportunistic infections. Many strains have developed resistance to commonly used antifungal agents, including azoles, polyenes, and echinocandins, complicating treatment, especially in immuno-compromised patients. Understanding the mechanisms underlying antifungal resistance, such as mutations in genes involved in ergosterol biosynthesis, efflux pump activity, and enzymatic pathways, is crucial for developing targeted interventions. Given the challenges associated with discovering new antifungal agents, medicinal plants have emerged as a promising source of bioactive compounds with anti-<i>Candida</i> activity. Secondary metabolites, including terpenoids, alkaloids, flavonoids, and tannins, exhibit various mechanisms of action, such as biofilm inhibition, membrane disruption, and oxidative stress induction. However, challenges such as extract standardization, and the lack of clinical studies continue to limit their therapeutic application. This review underscores the potential of medicinal plants as complementary or alternative strategies to conventional antifungal therapies, emphasizing the need for multidisciplinary research to overcome these hurdles and harness the therapeutic potential of natural products. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1626c2af18344426815a1a6acdb5328a |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1999-4923 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Pharmaceutics |
| spelling | doaj-art-1626c2af18344426815a1a6acdb5328a2025-08-20T03:16:35ZengMDPI AGPharmaceutics1999-49232025-05-0117668710.3390/pharmaceutics17060687Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> StrainsThainá dos Santos Dantas0Janaina Carla Barbosa Machado1Magda Rhayanny Assunção Ferreira2Luiz Alberto Lira Soares3Postgraduate Program in Therapeutic Innovation, Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilPostgraduate Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilPostgraduate Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilPostgraduate Program in Therapeutic Innovation, Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilThe pathogenicity of <i>Candida</i> spp. poses a persistent challenge, particularly in hospital environments where these species proliferate and cause opportunistic infections. Many strains have developed resistance to commonly used antifungal agents, including azoles, polyenes, and echinocandins, complicating treatment, especially in immuno-compromised patients. Understanding the mechanisms underlying antifungal resistance, such as mutations in genes involved in ergosterol biosynthesis, efflux pump activity, and enzymatic pathways, is crucial for developing targeted interventions. Given the challenges associated with discovering new antifungal agents, medicinal plants have emerged as a promising source of bioactive compounds with anti-<i>Candida</i> activity. Secondary metabolites, including terpenoids, alkaloids, flavonoids, and tannins, exhibit various mechanisms of action, such as biofilm inhibition, membrane disruption, and oxidative stress induction. However, challenges such as extract standardization, and the lack of clinical studies continue to limit their therapeutic application. This review underscores the potential of medicinal plants as complementary or alternative strategies to conventional antifungal therapies, emphasizing the need for multidisciplinary research to overcome these hurdles and harness the therapeutic potential of natural products.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/17/6/687fungal infectionsantifungal resistancebioactive compoundphytochemicalmedicinal plants |
| spellingShingle | Thainá dos Santos Dantas Janaina Carla Barbosa Machado Magda Rhayanny Assunção Ferreira Luiz Alberto Lira Soares Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> Strains Pharmaceutics fungal infections antifungal resistance bioactive compound phytochemical medicinal plants |
| title | Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> Strains |
| title_full | Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> Strains |
| title_fullStr | Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> Strains |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> Strains |
| title_short | Bioactive Plant Compounds as Alternatives Against Antifungal Resistance in the <i>Candida</i> Strains |
| title_sort | bioactive plant compounds as alternatives against antifungal resistance in the i candida i strains |
| topic | fungal infections antifungal resistance bioactive compound phytochemical medicinal plants |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4923/17/6/687 |
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