Anti-Trichomonas vaginalis activity of marine-associated fungi from the South Brazilian Coast

Abstract

Trichomonas vaginalis is the causative agent of trichomonosis, the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease. Infection with this protozoan may have serious consequences, especially for women. Currently, 5-nitroimidazole drugs are the treatment of choice for trichomonosis, but the emergence of resistance has limited the effectiveness of this therapy. In this context, this study aimed to evaluate the anti-T. vaginalis activity of marine-associated fungi found in the South Brazilian Coast. A total of 42 marine-associated fungal species (126 filtrate samples) isolated from 39 different marine organisms, mainly sponges, were selected to be screened against T. vaginalis. Of these, two filtrate samples from Hypocrea lixii F02 and Penicillium citrinum F40 showed significant growth-inhibitory activity (up to 100%) against ATCC 30236 and fresh clinical isolates, including a metronidazole-resistant isolate. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of H. lixii F02 and P. citrinum F40 samples for all isolates tested, including the metronidazole-resistant isolate, were 2.5 mg/mL. The kinetic growth curve showed that the filtrate samples were able to reduce the density of parasites to zero within 24 h of incubation, which was confirmed by microscopy. Both fungal filtrate samples exhibited no hemolytic activity, and the P. citrinum F40 filtrate sample showed low cytotoxicity against Vero cells. These data suggest that marine-associated fungi from the South Brazilian Coast may produce potential candidates for further investigation and possible use in the treatment of metronidazole-resistant trichomonosis.

Biological Activities of Essential Oils from Leaves of Paramignya trimera (Oliv.) Guillaum and Limnocitrus littoralis (Miq.) Swingle

“…T. vaginalis is a flagellated parasite affecting about 156 million people each year in the world [32]. Trichomoniasis infection may cause serious health consequences, especially for women [33]. The current treatment is being based upon 5-nitroimidazole [33].…”

“…Trichomoniasis infection may cause serious health consequences, especially for women [33]. The current treatment is being based upon 5-nitroimidazole [33]. However, the emergence of resistance has limited the effectiveness of this therapy [34,35].…”

Bioprospecting Sponge-Associated Microbes for Antimicrobial Compounds

“…Scopel et al [ 129 ] isolated two sponge-associated fungi, namely Hypocrea lixii F02 and Penicillium citrinum F40 ( Table 4 ) that were active against the protozoal parasite Trichomonas vaginalis , which causes trichomoniasis, a sexually transmitted disease [ 130 ]. Culture filtrates of both isolates inhibited T. vaginalis ATCC 30236 and fresh clinical isolates, including the metronidazole-resistant TV-LACM2, with MIC values of 2.5 mg/mL.…”

“…Culture filtrates of both isolates inhibited T. vaginalis ATCC 30236 and fresh clinical isolates, including the metronidazole-resistant TV-LACM2, with MIC values of 2.5 mg/mL. Further observation indicated that culture filtrates of these two fungi had no haemolytic effect against mammalian cells, which is one of the important criteria to further develop anti-protozoal drugs [ 129 ].…”

Ultrastructure-based Insights on Anti-Trichomonas vaginalis Effects of Selected Egyptian Red Sea Marine Resources

“…Several research groups around the world have paid attention to discover natural products from marine organisms with activity against protozoal diseases, such as malaria, Chagas disease, leishmaniasis, and African trypanosomosis [11 -13]. Anti-Trichomonas activity was also described in studies on marine algae [14 -16] and fungi [17]. Extracts from twenty-five seaweeds were tested against T. vaginalis, of which 44% presented high to moderate activity with low cytotoxicity [14].…”