Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Sep 9;5(3):85.
doi: 10.3390/jof5030085.

Sweet Relief: Determining the Antimicrobial Activity of Medical Grade Honey Against Vaginal Isolates of Candida albicans

Renée Hermanns  1 , Niels A J Cremers  2 , John P Leeming  3 , Esther T van der Werf  4   5
Affiliations

Sweet Relief: Determining the Antimicrobial Activity of Medical Grade Honey Against Vaginal Isolates of Candida albicans

Renée Hermanns et al. J Fungi (Basel). .

Abstract

Recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVVC) is predicted to increase to almost 158 million cases annually by 2030. Extensive self-diagnosis and easily accessible over-the-counter (OTC) fungistatic drugs contribute to antifungal-resistance, illustrating the need for novel therapies. Honey possesses multiple antimicrobial mechanisms, and there is no antimicrobial resistance towards honey reported. We evaluated the susceptibility of five clinical isolates of Candida albicans and a control strain to regular honey and a medical grade honey (MGH) gel formulation (L-Mesitran, containing 40% honey and vitamins C and E) using an adapted version of the EUCAST protocol at pH 5.2, 4.6, and 4.0. 40% regular honey did not kill or inhibit C. albicans. In contrast, the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of L-Mesitran was 25%-50%, while fungicidal effects occurred at a 50% concentration (MBC) of the MGH formulation, except for one strain which was not killed at pH 4.0. Overall, pH had little effect on antimicrobial activity. MGH formulation L-Mesitran has antimicrobial activity against C. albicans over a relevant pH range. The vitamin supplements or other components of L-Mesitran may enhance the antifungal activity of the honey. This study supports performing clinical trials for conditions, such as RVVC, to find an alternative to available OTC fungistatic drugs.

Keywords: antibiotic resistance; candida; candidiasis; medical grade honey; recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis; vaginitis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

EvdW is a Senior Lecturer in Infectious Diseases and Epidemiology of the School of Medicine at Taylor’s University in Malaysia and declares no conflict of interest. At the time of the study, EvdW was employed by the University of Bristol, United Kingdom and is responsible for initiation of the study. JL is a Clinical Scientist specialised in Infection Sciences at Southmead Hospital, Bristol, United Kingdom and declares no conflict of interest. JL was responsible for the design of the study, susceptibility testing and presentation of the results. RH and NC are employed by Triticum Exploitatie B.V. which provided the test compounds used in this study free of charge. No other conflict of interest applies. RH and NC were responsible for drafting this manuscript but were not involved in the design or interpretation of the data.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Activity of L-Mesitran against clinical Candida albicans isolates tested at pH 5.2, 4.6, and 4.0, shown as the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) and minimum fungicidal concentrations (MFC). NCPF 3179 was added as the control strain.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Chong P.P., Abdul Hadi S.R., Lee Y.L., Phan C.L., Tan B.C., Ng K.P., Seow H.F. Genotyping and drug resistance profile of Candida spp. in recurrent and one-off vaginitis, and high association of non-albicans species with non-pregnant status. Infect. Genet. Evol. 2007;7:449–456. doi: 10.1016/j.meegid.2007.01.004. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cauchie M., Desmet S., Lagrou K. Candida and its dual lifestyle as a commensal and a pathogen. Res. Microbiol. 2017;168:802–810. doi: 10.1016/j.resmic.2017.02.005. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Denning D.W., Kneale M., Sobel J.D., Rautemaa-Richardson R. Global burden of recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis: a systematic review. Lancet Infect. Dis. 2018;18:e339–e347. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(18)30103-8. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Korporaal H., Vinkers M., van Belkum A., van Binsbergen J., Lagro-Janssen T., Helmerhorst T., van der Meijden W. Vulvovaginal candidiasis: Diagnostic and therapeutic approaches used by Dutch general practitioners AU - Engberts, Maria Karin. Eur. J. Gen. Pract. 2008;14:30–33. doi: 10.1080/13814780701814929. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Gardella C.E.L., Lentz G.M. In: Comprehensive Gynecology. Lentz G.L.R., Gershenson D., Valea F.A., editors. Volume 7. Elsevier; Philadelphia, PA, USA: 2012. pp. 524–565.

LinkOut - more resources