Scientists highlight extracts from Portulaca oleracea and Lawsonia inermis to have anti-Candida properties. The study, published in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, looked into seven plant extracts to find which ones were most potent against Candida albicans while remaining safe for human use.

• Candida albicans is one of the leading causes of disease in both in people who are immunosuppressed and those who are immunocompetent.
• The researchers gathered extracts from seven plants: Avicennia marina (gray mangrove), Fagonia indica, Lawsonia inermis (henna), Portulaca oleracea (common purslane), Salvadora persica, Ziziphus spina-christi (Christ’s thorn jujube), and Asphodelus tenuifolius.
• They tested these extracts on various morphologies of C. albicans. They also determined the plants’ antibacterial properties on Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, and the multidrug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii and Klebsiella pneumoniae. To test for cytotoxicity, the extracts were applied to human erythrocytes.
• Extracts from P. oleracea and L. inermis successfully inhibited the action, growth, and development of C. albicans. The extracts from the two herbs also killed the bacteria in the test and showed no signs of cytotoxicity.

The researchers concluded that extracts from P. oleracea and L. inermis had potent anti-Candida and antibacterial properties and that they were safe for human use.

Read the full text of this study at this link.

Journal Reference:

Soliman SSM, Semreen MH, El-Keblawy AA, Abdullah A, Uppuluri P, Ibrahim AS. ASSESSMENT OF HERBAL DRUGS FOR PROMISING ANTI-CANDIDA ACTIVITY. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2017;17(1). DOI: 10.1186/s12906-017-1760-x