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New anti- Candida albicans drugs are needed due to the emergence of resistant cases in recent years. Perillaldehyde (PAE) is a natural monoterpenoid compound derived from Perilla frutescens. The minimum inhibitory concentration of PAE against C. albicans was 0.4 μL/mL. We aimed to elucidate the antifungal mode of action of PAE against C. albicans. The antifungal activity of PAE against C. albicans was found to correlate with an elevation in intracellular Ca and accumulation of ROS. Several downstream apoptosis events such as the disruption of mitochondrial membrane potential, phosphatidylserine externalization, cytochrome c release, and metacaspase activation were observed in PAE-treated cells. DNA damage and nuclear fragmentation assays also revealed apoptosis of C. albicans cells. In summary, by means of fluorescent microscopy, flow cytometer analysis, and Western blot, our data uncovered that PAE exerts its antifungal activity through Ca and oxidative stress-mediated apoptosis mechanisms. This study deciphered the mode of action of PAE, which will be useful in the design of improved antifungal therapies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A correction to the article "Calcium and oxidative stress mediate perillaldehyde-induced apoptosis in Candida albicans,"

Candida albicans invasion is one of the most serious fungal infections in clinical history. In recent years, because of the widespread use of immunosuppressive drugs, chemotherapy drugs, glucocorticoids, and broad-spectrum antibiotics, serious drug resistance has been reported; therefore, a new type of antifungal drug needs to be developed. In this study, we found that Nerol (NEL) had strong antimicrobial activity and 0.77 μL/mL NEL was the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) effective against C. albicans. We determined the change of the growth curve of NEL for C. albicans, to identify the trend of NEL activity against C. albicans. Through the determination of the ergosterol content and glucose-induced extracellular fluid acidification of NEL on C. albicans, we found that NEL inhibits the growth of C. albicans by destroying cell membranes. This finding was also supported by the expression of SAP (secreted aspartyl proteinase) involved in cell membrane synthesis. Finally, demonstrations of phenotype investigation, colony-forming unit (CFU) counts, and PAS (periodic acid-Schiff) staining were conducted to prove that NEL had the ability to treated mouse oral C. albicans infection and vaginal C. albicans infection. This research may help us to investigate new antimicrobial agents for treating C. albicans infections. Key Points: • NEL can inhibit the growth of C. albicans. • NEL destroys the cell membrane formation and permeability of C. albicans. • NEL can treat vulvovaginal candidiasis and oropharyngeal candidiasis in mice. • NEL could be used as a possible antifungal agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The invasion of Candida albicans is one of the most common fungal infections seen in clinical practice, and serious drug resistance has been reported in recent years. Therefore, new anti-C. albicans drugs must be introduced. In this research, it was demonstrated that cinnamaldehyde (CA) shows strong antimicrobial activity, with 0.26 mg/mL CA being the minimum inhibitory concentration to manage C. albicans. Extraordinarily, we detected that CA accumulated the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) and enhanced the calcium concentration in the cytoplasm and mitochondria through flow cytometry. In addition, we observed that C. albicans cells released Cytochrome c from the mitochondria to the cytoplasm, depolarized the mitochondrial membrane potential, and activated the metacaspase when exposed to 0.065, 0.13, 0.26, and 0.52 mg/mL CA. Furthermore, to confirm that CA introduces the C. albicans apoptosis, we discovered that when the phosphatidylserine was exposed, DNA damage and chromatin condensation occurred, which were detected by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) and 4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining. Finally, demonstrations of phenotype investigation, colony-forming unit (CFU) counts, and periodic acid–Schiff (PAS) staining were conducted to prove that CA possessed the ability to treat oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC) and vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC). From the above, our research indicates that CA is a promising antifungal candidate when applied to C. albicans infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To evaluate the correlation between injury patterns of the medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL) and vastus medialis obliquus (VMO) after acute first-time lateral patellar dislocation (LPD) in adults.Methods: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was prospectively performed in 132 consecutive adults with acute first-time LPD. Images were acquired and evaluated using standardized protocols. Injury patterns of MPFL were grouped by location and severity for analysis of the prevalence of VMO injury.Results: MRI demonstrated VMO injury in 63 (47.7%) patients. Twenty (38.5%) and 43 cases (56.6%) were present in partial and complete MPFL tear subgroups, respectively. Compared with partial MPFL tears, complete tears showed a higher prevalence of VMO injury (P = 0.044). The mean coronal (28.5 mm) and mean sagittal VMO elevations (20.7 mm) were higher in the complete MPFL tear subgroup than in the partial tear subgroup (19.8 mm, P = 0.005; 11.9 mm, P < 0.001). No correlations were identified between the prevalence of VMO injury and location subgroups of MPFL injury (n.s.). Mean VMO elevations were higher in isolated femoral-side (FEM) and combined MPFL tear (COM) subgroups (mean coronal VMO elevation of 29 mm and mean sagittal VMO elevation of 20.8 mm in the FEM subgroup; mean coronal VMO elevation of 29.6 mm and mean sagittal VMO elevation of 23.1 mm in the COM subgroup) than in the isolated patellar-side MPFL tear (PAT) subgroup (P = 0.022, P < 0.001) (mean coronal VMO elevation of 20.7 mm and mean sagittal VMO elevation of 10.6 mm).Conclusions: Complete MPFL tear predisposes to VMO injury and has a higher elevation of torn VMO after acute first-time LPD in adults. Isolated femoral-side and combined MPFL tears predispose to higher elevation of torn VMO.Level Of Evidence: IV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]