Wykorzystanie Lactiplantibacillus plantarum jako kandydata przeciwgrzybiczego przeciwko opornej na leki Candida albicans

BACKGROUND: Candida albicans is a human opportunistic pathogen responsible for superficial and invasive candidiasis. It is one of the emerging nosocomial pathogens infecting immunocompromised and debilitated individuals, increasing the rate of secondary infections in diseases like HIV. The emerging drug resistance among species is making treatment cumbersome. Also, biofilm-forming ability of C. albicans is one of the primary factors contributing to its virulence as its blocks the penetration of drugs, therefore leading to drug inefficacy. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, a part of the normal flora known for its antimicrobial properties against pathogens. METHODS AND RESULTS: Lactobacillus FL5 was isolated from fermented milk sample and identified as Lactiplantibacillus plantarum. The culture supernatant (CS) of FL5 showed 21 mm zone of inhibition against C. albicans MTCC 4748 using agar-well diffusion assay. Lact. plantarum FL5 showed 75.8% co-aggregation with C. albicans at 8 h using spectroscopic technique. Both antibiofilm and dispersal potential of CS of FL5 against C. albicans biofilms were evaluated using crystal violet assay and images were recorded using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). FL5 showed 77% biofilm inhibition and 37% dispersal of preformed C. albicans biofilms. The production of organic acids, phenolics, aldehydes and ketones in CS was estimated using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The gas chromatography- flame ionization detection (GC-FID) showed presence of 0.8 ppm butyric acid, followed by acetic acid (0.143 ppm) and propionic acid (0.115 ppm) in CS. CONCLUSION: The use of Lact. plantarum as a potential candidate for targeting C. albicans biofilms to tackle antimicrobial resistance and effective treatment.