Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 10, 2026
Measuring Volatile and Non-volatile Antifungal Activity of Biocontrol Products
Published on: December 5, 2020
Antifungal activity of medicinal plant extracts; preliminary screening studies
Duncan Webster1, Pierre Taschereau, René J Belland
1Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, Saint John Regional Hospital, PO Box 2100, Saint John, New Brunswick E2L 4L2, Canada. dvwebste@dal.ca
Ethnopharmacological Relevance:
In the setting of HIV and organ transplantation, opportunistic fungal infections have become a common cause of morbidity and mortality. Thus antifungal therapy is playing a greater role in health care. Traditional plants are a valuable source of novel antifungals.
Aim Of The Study:
To assess in vitro antifungal activity of aqueous plant extracts. The minimum inhibitory concentrations were determined for each extract in the setting of human pathogenic fungal isolates.
Materials And Methods:
Plants were harvested and identification verified. Aqueous extracts were obtained and antifungal susceptibilities determined using serial dilutional extracts with a standardized microdilution broth methodology. Twenty-three fungal isolates were cultured and exposed to the plant extracts. Five known antifungals were used as positive controls. Results were read at 48 and 72 h.
Results:
Of the 14 plants analyzed, Fragaria virginiana Duchesne, Epilobium angustifolium L. and Potentilla simplex Michx. demonstrated strong antifungal potential overall. Fragaria virginiana had some degree of activity against all of the fungal pathogens. Alnus viridis DC., Betula alleghaniensis Britt. and Solidago gigantea Ait. also demonstrated a significant degree of activity against many of the yeast isolates.
Conclusion:
Fragaria virginiana, Epilobium angustifolium and Potentilla simplex demonstrate promising antifungal potential.
