The Anti-<i>Candida</i> Activity of <i>Tephrosia apollinea</i> Is More Superiorly Attributed to a Novel Steroidal Compound with Selective Targeting

<i>Tephrosia</i> is widely distributed throughout tropical, subtropical, and arid regions. This genus is known for several biological activities, including its anti-<i>Candida</i> activity, which is mainly attributed to prenylated flavonoids. The biological activities of most...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Naglaa S. Ashmawy, Eman M. El-labbad, Alshaimaa M. Hamoda, Ali A. El-Keblawy, Abdel-Nasser A. El-Shorbagi, Kareem A. Mosa, Sameh S. M. Soliman
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-08-01
Series:Plants
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/11/16/2120
Description
Summary:<i>Tephrosia</i> is widely distributed throughout tropical, subtropical, and arid regions. This genus is known for several biological activities, including its anti-<i>Candida</i> activity, which is mainly attributed to prenylated flavonoids. The biological activities of most <i>Tephrosia</i> species have been studied, except <i>T. apollinea</i>. This study was conducted to investigate the underlying anti-<i>Candida</i> activity of <i>T. apollinea</i>, wildly grown in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The <i>T. apollinea</i> plant was collected, dried, and the leaves were separated. The leaves were ground and extracted. The dried extract was subjected to successive chromatography to identify unique phytochemicals with a special pharmacological activity. The activity of the compound was validated by homology modeling and molecular docking studies. A novel steroidal compound (ergosta-6, 8(14), 22, 24(28)-tetraen-3-one) was isolated and named TNS. In silico target identification of TNS revealed a high structural similarity with the <i>Candida</i> 14-α-demethylase enzyme substrate. The compound exhibited a significant anti-<i>Candida</i> activity, specifically against the multi-drug-resistant <i>Candida auris</i> at MIC<sub>50</sub>, 16 times less than the previously reported prenylated flavonoids and 5 times less than the methanol extract of the plant. These findings were supported by homology modeling and molecular docking studies. TNS may represent a new class of <i>Candida</i> 14-α-demethylase inhibitors.
ISSN:2223-7747