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In Vitro Susceptibility of Pythium insidiosum to Melaleuca alternifolia, Mentha piperita and Origanum vulgare Essential Oils Combinations

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Abstract

Pythium insidiosum is the etiologic agent of pythiosis, a severe and emerging disease that affects mammals. Failure of conventional antifungal therapies is partially justified by the absence of ergosterol in the plasma membrane of this oomycete. Despite research advancement, the treatment of pythiosis has not been not fully established. The present study investigated the in vitro susceptibility profile of Brazilian isolates of P. insidiosum (n = 20) against Melaleuca alternifolia, Mentha piperita and Origanum vulgare essential oils, and their combinations. Susceptibility tests were performed according to CLSI M38-A2 protocol, and combinations were evaluated by the microdilution cherkerboard method. All tested essential oils showed antimicrobial activity against P. insidiosum, and the greatest activity of O. vulgare was highlighted. Synergistic and/or indifferent effect was observed for all combinations evaluated, especially the M. piperita and O. vulgare combination, which showed 65 % synergism. This is the first study to report in vitro combinations of essential oils against P. insidiosum indicating the susceptibility of this oomycete to M. alternifolia, M. piperita and O. vulgare essential oils, as well as their combinations.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the Brazilian Institutes: Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) [Process: 442,020/2014-7], Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul (FAPERGS) [Process: 1933-2551/13] and Coordenação de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) for scientific and financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratório de Micologia, Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Campus Capão do Leão, s/no, Prédio 18, Sala 14, Pelotas, RS, 96010-900, Brazil

    Júlia de Souza Silveira Valente, Anelise de Oliveira da Silva Fonseca, Vanessa Silveira Dal Ben, Fernando de Souza Maia Filho, Cristiane Telles Baptista, Caroline Quintana Braga, Cristina Gomes Zambrano & Daniela Isabel Brayer Pereira

  2. Laboratório de Pesquisas Micológicas, Universidade Federal de Santa Maria, Campus Universitário Camobi, Santa Maria, RS, 97105-900, Brazil

    Laura Bedin Denardi, Sydney Hartz Alves & Sônia de Avila Botton

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  1. Júlia de Souza Silveira Valente
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  2. Anelise de Oliveira da Silva Fonseca
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Correspondence to Daniela Isabel Brayer Pereira.

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de Souza Silveira Valente, J., de Oliveira da Silva Fonseca, A., Denardi, L.B. et al. In Vitro Susceptibility of Pythium insidiosum to Melaleuca alternifolia, Mentha piperita and Origanum vulgare Essential Oils Combinations. Mycopathologia 181, 617–622 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11046-016-0019-2

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