Antifungal Activity of Thymol Against Some Medically Important Fungi

Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) have emerged in the last three decades as an important cause of human disease. These infections treated particularly with triazole such as fluconazole, itraconazole and voriconazole but some serious adverse reactions have been reported in many studies . In vitro activities of 12 essential oils were evaluated against 6 clinically important fungal strains. Thyme oil was the most effective essential oil against all the tested fungal strains and Aspergillus flavus was the most susceptible with inhibition zone diameter and MIC values of 39 mm and 0.25 μg/ml, respectively. Active ingredients of thyme oil were analysed using GC/Mass chromatography and extracted by Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC). Thymol was the most active component against Aspergillus flavus with inhibition zone diameter and MIC values of 44 mm and 0.125 μg/ml, respectively. The inhibitory activity of thymol against Aspergillus flavus was confirmed using Transmission electron microscope.