In Silico and In Vitro Investigation of the Antifungal Activity of Isoeugenol against Penicillium citrinum

Abstract

Introduction: This increase in the prevalence of drug-resistant pathogens occurs at a time when the discovery and development of new antimicrobial agents occur slowly. In this context, the objective of this study was to investigate the antifungal activity of isoeugenol, a phenylpropanoid, by in vitro and in silico assays against Penicillium citrinum strains.

Material and method: For in silico analysis, the software PASS online, Molinspiration and Osíris were used. For the determination of Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimal Fungicide Concentration (MFC) of isoeugenol and voriconazole were carried out using the broth microdilution technique. PASS online has shown that isoeugenol has the opportunity to present antiseptic, antifungal, antibacterial, antimycobacterial activities. Molinspiration showed that the phytoconstituent has good potential for oral bioavailability.

Conclusion: In the analysis with the Osiris program, it was demonstrated that isoeugenol has low irritant and tumorigenic risk. The MIC of isoeugenol varied between 256 and 32 µg/mL, MIC50 of 64 µg/mL and MIC90 was 128 µg/mL. The MFC50, MFC90 and MFC of the isoeugenol for P. citrinum species were 64, 256 and 518 μg/mL, respectively. After analysis, it was verified that the isoeugenol have bactericidal effect against the strains of P. citrinum. After these results, it is important to discover the mechanism of action involved in the antifungal action of the compound, as well as in vitro and in vivo toxicity tests.

Keywords: Antifungal activity; Antimicrobian activity; Bioavailability; In silico analysis; Isoeugenol; Phenylpropanoids; Toxicity..