COMPOSIÇÃO QUÍMICA E BIOATIVIDADES DE ÓLEOS ESSENCIAIS DE ESPÉCIES AROMÁTICAS DO CERRADO: Protium ovatum, Campomanesia adamantium, Cardiopetalum calophyllum

Abstract

The Cerrado is the second largest Brazilian biome whose wide variety of plants has been poorly investigated both commercially and scientifically even though they exhibit potential to be applied to industries due to the active compounds found in their extracts and essential oils (EOs). Several species found in the Cerrado are very rich in EOs. This study aimed at characterizing and applying EOs from Cardiopetalum calophyllum (CC), Campomanesia adamantium (CA) and Protium ovatum (PO) to control the fungus Malassezia furfur and other species of the genus Candida. EOs were extracted from leaves by hydrodistillation while chemical compounds were identified by Gas Chromatography-Flame Ionization Detection (GC-FID) and by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). Antifungal activity and biofilm formation were determined by the method of broth microdilution on 96-well sterile plates, which enabled to evaluate both Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Biofilm Inhibitory Concentration (MBIC), while anti-inflammatory activity was determined by the chemotaxis assay. The chemical analysis identified 18 compounds in EOs from CC leaves, 23 compounds in PO and 33 in CA, which represented 96.2%, 96.3% and 97.9% of components, respectively. The chemical analysis of EOs from P. ovatum fruit exhibited 8 compounds in unripe fruit and 7 compounds in ripe ones, i. e., 99.88% and 99.99% of components found in EOs, respectively. Concerning EOs from CC, CA and PO leaves, EO-CA and EO-PO were the most active ones against the yeast M. furfur but EO-CC also exhibited considerable activity. EOs from P. ovatum (EO-PO) ripe fruit had the highest MIC, along with EO-CA, against M. furfur, which was 375 µl. EOs from P. ovatum unripe fruit exhibited low MIC, i. e., they were less active than the ones from its ripe fruit. EOs from CC, CA and PO leaves also exhibited potential anti-inflammatory effect: their IC 50 were 24.4 µg/mL, 15.7 µg/mL and 32.5 µg/mL, respectively. Regarding activities against different Candida species, EOs from ripe fruit exhibited MICs against Candida albicans (62.5 µg/mL), C. glabrata (62.5 µg/mL), C. metapsilosis (250 µg/mL) and C. parapsilosis (250 µg/mL), while EOs from unripe fruit had weak activity against all strains under investigation (MIC > 1000 µg/mL). Considering good results of the four Candida species, inhibition of biofilm formation was also evaluated and C. albicans, C. glabrata and C. parapsilosis exhibited MIC = 250 µg/mL, while C. metapsilosis showed 1000 µg/mL. The study of EO-CC, EO-CA and EO-PO has shown to be promising to develop new antifungal treatments against pathologies that involve M. furfur and different Candida species. However, further studies are needed to contribute to the knowledge of this field and its application.

KEY WORDS: Antifungal activity, Malassezia furfur, anti-inflammatory activity, Candida, Cardiopetalum calophyllum, Campomanesia adamantium, Protium ovatum, biofilm