Premium
Efficacy of a rhamnolipid biosurfactant to inhibit Trichophyton rubrum in vitro and in a mice model of dermatophytosis
Author(s) -
Sen Suparna,
Borah Siddhartha Narayan,
Kandimalla Raghuram,
Bora Arijit,
Deka Suresh
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
experimental dermatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.108
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1600-0625
pISSN - 0906-6705
DOI - 10.1111/exd.13921
Subject(s) - trichophyton rubrum , microbiology and biotechnology , trichophyton , chemistry , in vitro , dermatophyte , hypha , biology , biochemistry , antifungal
Abstract Dermatophytic infections caused by Trichophyton rubrum are the most prevalent superficial mycoses worldwide. The present study was aimed at evaluating the anti‐dermatophytic effect of a rhamnolipid biosurfactant ( RL ) produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa SS 14 (GenBank Accession no. KC 866140) against T. rubrum in experimentally induced dermatophytosis in mice models. The purified RL could effectively suppress spore germination and hyphal proliferation of T. rubrum at 500 μg/mL. Ultramicroscopic observations involving SEM and AFM studies revealed severely altered hyphal morphology in the RL ‐treated mycelia. The membrane disruptive effect of RL was measured by the uptake of propidium iodide ( PI ) as visualized by CLSM . The absorbance of the RL ‐treated cell suspension at 260 nm showed concentration‐dependant exudation of nucleic acid due to loss of cell membrane integrity. On evaluation of the therapeutic efficacy of RL on experimentally induced cutaneous dermatophytosis in mice models, we observed that the RL , when applied topically at a concentration of 500 μg/mL, was effective in completely curing dermatophytosis at the end of 21‐day treatment period. The results were statistically similar to those obtained using the standard drug terbinafine as control. Apart from macroscopic observation, the results were confirmed by culture of skin scrapings and histopathological examination. The results are suggestive of the effectiveness of RL in control of dermatophytosis caused by T. rubrum .