Chemical Constituents and Antifungal Potential of Combined Essential Oils of the Leaves of Coleus barbatus and Corymbia citriodora Growing in Tanzania against Skin Fungal Pathogens

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Published: 2025-05-31
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26538/tjnpr/v9i5.3
Keywords:
Tanzania, Corymbia citriodora, Coleus barbatus, Antifungal, Essential oils

Main Article Content

Ramadhani S. O. Nondo
Department of Biological and Pre-Clinical Studies, Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, P.O. Box 65001, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 
Francis Machumi
Department of Natural Products Development and Formulations, Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, P. O. Box 65001, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 
Alfredi A. Moyo
Mabibo Traditional Medicine Research Centre, National Institute for Medical Research, Barack Obama Drive, P.O Box 9653, 11101 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 
Juma I. Juma
Department of Biological and Pre-Clinical Studies, Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, P.O. Box 65001, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 
Pax J. Masimba
Department of Biological and Pre-Clinical Studies, Institute of Traditional Medicine, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, P.O. Box 65001, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 

Abstract

New antifungal agents are required to address the challenges of treating skin fungal infections. Coleus barbatus and Corymbia citriodora are used traditionally to treat skin fungal infections. The antifungal efficacy of essential oils (EOs) of these plants against fungal pathogens has been reported, however, there is no report on the antifungal efficacy of their combination. This study aimed to determine the chemical compositions and antifungal activity of the combined EOs of the leaves of C. barbatus and C. citriodora from Tanzania. The EOs were extracted by steam distillation and compounds were analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). Antifungal activity against Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans, Candida tropicalis, Candida glabrata, Candida krusei, Trichophyton interdigitale, Trichophyton rubrum, and Microsporum gypseum was assessed using agar-well diffusion method. Means of inhibition zone diameters of different treatments of EOs were compared by One-way ANOVA and Tukey’s post-hoc test. Major components of C. barbatus EO were camphor (17.83%), 1,3,8-p-menthatriene (13.57%), thymol (10.43%), and camphene (10.18%). The major phytoconstituents of C. citriodora EO were (1R,2R,5S)-2-isopropenyl-5-methylcyclohexanol (p-menth-8-en-3-ol) (75.43%) and (1S,2R,5R)-2-(2-Hydroxypropan-2-yl)-5-methylcyclohexanol (5.92%). The C. barbatus EO was more active against C. tropicalis, C. albicans clinical isolates, and M. gypseum while C. citriodora EO was more active against C. albicans 23Q (NR-29341) and T. rubrum. The EOs of both plants exhibited similar activity against A. niger and T. interdigitale. Combinations of the EOs improved activity against dermatophytes and Candida species; therefore, further studies are recommended to investigate the antifungal efficacy of combined C. barbatus and C. citriodora EOs.  

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Article Details

Issue

Vol. 9 No. 5 (2025): Tropical Journal of Natural Product Research (TJNPR)

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Articles
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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Nondo, R. S. O., Machumi, F., Moyo, A. A., Juma, J. I., & Masimba, P. J. (2025). Chemical Constituents and Antifungal Potential of Combined Essential Oils of the Leaves of Coleus barbatus and Corymbia citriodora Growing in Tanzania against Skin Fungal Pathogens. Tropical Journal of Natural Product Research (TJNPR), 9(5), 1901 – 1908. https://doi.org/10.26538/tjnpr/v9i5.3

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