P341 Evaluation of anti-Candida activity of Cinnamaldehyde using mice model

Abstract

Poster session 3, September 23, 2022, 12:30 PM - 1:30 PM Objective: Vaginal candidiasis is a frequent infection afflicting the female population. Candida co-infections are reported in escalating frequency and can be associated with severe health hazards or even death. People with severe COVID-19, malignancies, AIDS, and organ transplants are particularly vulnerable to invasive vaginal candidiasis. Due to the high frequency of infections associated with recurrence, vaginal candidiasis poses a significant medical problem worldwide. Treatments of vaginal candidiasis are limited due to drug resistance, side effects, and toxicity. CIN is a natural compound and its antifungal activity is widely reported. The introduction of cinnamaldehyde (CIN) as the anti-Candidal agent will revolutionize the treatment of vaginal candidiasis. In this study, we investigated the anti-Candida activity of CIN against vaginal candidiasis in Swiss albino mice (C3HHC-Strain). Methods Vaginal candidiasis in mice (Swiss albino) was induced under conditions of pseudo-estrus. Persistent vaginal infection was found in estrogenized mice after vaginal challenge with C. albicans. The mice were treated orally after confirmation of infection in mice. The efficacy of CIN treatment was investigated phenotypically by colony-forming unit (CFU) counts in the vaginal smear, fungal load determination in the blood, the ovarian and vaginal tissues and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining of histopathological sections of the vaginal tissues. The hematological parameters of the experimental mice were also evaluated. Results The pseudohyphae and spores of C. albicans were present in the vaginal smear of experimentally infected mice. After treatment, no C. albicans colonies were found in the vaginal lavage of infected mice. The fungal burden was significantly higher in the vagina and the ovaries of infected mice. However, a dose of 262.5 mg/kg BW of CIN reduced the number of CFU in the vagina and ovaries in treated mice. The histopathology revealed the absence of C. albicans in the vaginal tissue of the treated mice. Nonetheless, the vaginal sections of infected mice exhibited pathological changes. The hematological parameters such as RBC count, WBC count, and percentage of hemoglobin showed significant differences in the treatment groups compared to the infected group. Conclusion Cinnamaldehyde showed good in vivo antifungal potential against vaginal candidiasis. However, evaluation of its pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic parameters and complete elucidation of its mode of action are desirous.