Antifungal, anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic effects of zingiber cassumunar gel

This study aimed to investigate the antifungal, anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic effects of Zingiber cassumunar gel. The gel was prepared from essential oil of Zingiber cassumunar rhizome by the Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research. Antifungal activity of the gel was firstly determined by the well diffusion method against Candida albicans ATCC 10238 and candida strain isolated from the patient's lesion. Then, the Agar overlay technique was used to test the cytotoxicity of Z. cassumunar gel on mouse fibroblasts (ATCC clone 929) according to ISO 7405. For anti-inflammatory effect of the gel, TPA (carrageenan lambda type IV, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate)-induced mouse ear edema method was used. The results of well diffusion showed that Z. cassumunar gel was quite a potent antifungal agent against both strains of tested C. albicans with inhibition zones of 12-13 mm. In the cytotoxicity test, the gel exhibited no toxicity to cell culture. In addition, topical administration of Z. cassumunar gel could decrease mouse ear edema induced by TPA. At 30 and 60 min-time points, Z. cassumunar gel showed higher anti-inflammatory activity than triamcinolone which was used as reference anti-inflammatory drug. In conclusion, gel prepared from Z. cassumunar oil showed antifungal activity against both strains of C. albicans. In addition, its anti-inflammatory effect was demonstrated within 30 min by the TPA-induced mouse ear edema model. The gel was non-toxic to cell culture after 24-h incubation. Further studies are needed to clarify the safety and benefit of this gel for clinical use in the treatment of candidal infection and inflammation.