Introduction:

Due to the development of resistance of microorganisms to multiple drugs, exhaustive investigations of therapeutic agents derived from natural sources, such as curcumin, have been carried out. Curcumin (diferuloylmethane) is a phenolic compound, the main curcuminoid present in the species Curcuma longa L. By virtue of its multiple pharmacological properties (antibacterial, antifungal and anti-inflammatory) it has been of great interest to scientists in recent years. The objective of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial effect of curcumin through the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) on strains of Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans.

Method:

The in vitro antibacterial activity of curcumin against E. faecalis (ATCC 51299), E. coli (ATCC 25922) and S. aureus (ATCC 25923) was evaluated, following the protocol according to the recommendations of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) in the document M-07-A8. The in vitro antifungal activity of curcumin against C. albicans (ATCC 26790) was evaluated following the protocol according to the CLSI recommendations in the documents M27-A.

Results:

The MIC values of curcumin were 125 μg/ml, 31.2 μg/ml, 31.2 μg/ml and 125 μg/ml for E. faecalis, E. coli, S. aureus and C. albicans, respectively.

Conclusion:

The results of this study reveal that curcumin in low concentrations has an antibacterial and antifungal effect on strains of E. faecalis, E. coli, S. aureus and C. albicans.

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