Abstract :
The antifungal profiles of green tea (Camellia sinensis) were examined against clinical isolates of Dermatophytes (Trichophyton mentagrophytes, T.verrucosum and T.rubrum) and some pathogenic yeasts (Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans). Maceration method was used for the extraction of active substances from the green tea with cold and hot ethanolic and water extraction solvents. Agar dilution method was used in the antifungal susceptibility studies. This study revealed that the cold ethanolic extract was the most effective one, followed by the hot ethanolic extract while the aqueous extract was the least effective against all the tested fungi. All the extracts exhibited greater antifungal activity against Dermatophytes than the yeasts. The highest inhibitory effect of cold ethanolic extract reached to 96.92% at 20 mg/ml concentrations for T.mentagrophytes and T.rubrum, and 92.30% for T.verrucosum. In yeasts, the rate of inhibitory effect showed that with 200 mg/ml of cold ethanolic extract, the inhibitory rate of C.albicans and C.neoformans were 83% and 84% respectively. This study, therefore, suggest that the green tea could have strong biocidal substance against Dermatophytes and some pathogenic yeasts, and therefore, may have the potential effective role in the treatment of human and animal dermatophytosis when used as ointment preparation
