In Vitro Antimicrobial Properties of Coconut Oil on Candida Species in Ibadan, Nigeria
Abstract
The emergence of antimicrobial resistance, coupled with the availability of fewer antifungal agents with fungicidal actions, prompted this present study to characterize Candida species in our environment and determine the effectiveness of virgin coconut oil as an antifungal agent on these species. In 2004, 52 recent isolates of Candida species were obtained from clinical specimens sent to the Medical Microbiology Laboratory, University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. Their susceptibilities to virgin coconut oil and fluconazole were studied by using the agar-well diffusion technique. Candida albicans was the most common isolate from clinical specimens (17); others were Candida glabrata (nine), Candida tropicalis (seven), Candida parapsilosis (seven), Candida stellatoidea (six), and Candida krusei (six). C. albicans had the highest susceptibility to coconut oil (100%), with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 25% (1:4 dilution), while fluconazole had 100% susceptibility at an MIC of 64 microg/mL (1:2 dilution). C. krusei showed the highest resistance to coconut oil with an MIC of 100% (undiluted), while fluconazole had an MIC of > 128 microg/mL. It is noteworthy that coconut oil was active against species of Candida at 100% concentration compared to fluconazole. Coconut oil should be used in the treatment of fungal infections in view of emerging drug-resistant Candida species.
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To the authors' knowledge, there are no in vitro studies on the effect of coconut products on oral pathogens other than Candida albicans and Streptococcus mutans.
“To our knowledge, there are no in vitro studies on the effect of coconut products on oral pathogens other than Candida albicans and Streptococcus mutans.(3,5)”
From Antibacterial effect of coconut water and coconut oil on Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (2021) · cites this paper as [3]
According to studies by Beenashino et al., Peedikayil et al., and Ogbolu et al., coconut oil has an inhibitory effect on Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli.
“According to studies by Beenashino et al, (4) Peedikayil et al, (7) and Ogbolu et al, (3) coconut oil has an inhibitory effect on Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli, which was inconsistent with the present results.”
From Antibacterial effect of coconut water and coconut oil on Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (2021) · cites this paper as [3]
Ogbolu et al. showed that coconut oil had antimicrobial effects on Candida.
“Ogbolu et al. (3) showed that coconut oil had antimicrobial effects on Candida, which is contrary to our study, likely due to differences in the type of microorganisms studied.”
From Antibacterial effect of coconut water and coconut oil on Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (2021) · cites this paper as [3]
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Al-Adhroey, A. H., Nor, Z. M., Al-Mekhlafi, H. M., Amran, A. A., & Mahmud, R. (2011) · Journal of Ethnopharmacology · doi:10.1016/j.jep.2011.01.026 · Cited by 49 · see citing works
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Kim, S., Jang, J. E., Kim, J., Lee, Y. I., Lee, D. W., Song, S. Y., & Lee, J. H. (2017) · Food and Chemical Toxicology · doi:10.1016/j.fct.2017.05.060 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Antibacterial effect of coconut water and coconut oil on Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans
Baharvand, M., Oral Medicine Dept. School of Dentistry, S. B. U. O. M. S., Shokri, M., Department of Dental Biomaterials, S. O. D., Hassani, S., General Dental Practitioner, S. O. D., Mirzaei, H., Postgraduate student, D. O. O. M., Mahdian, M., & Department of prosthodontics and Digital Technology, S. B. U. (2021) · Journal of Research in Dental and Maxillofacial Sciences · doi:10.52547/jrdms.6.3.40 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
- Authors
- Ogbolu, D. O., Oni, A. A., Daini, O. A., & Oloko, A. P.
- Affiliations
- University College Hospital, Ibadan (NG)
- Olabisi Onabanjo University (NG)
- Venue
- Journal of Medicinal Food
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2007-06
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 384-387
- ISSN
- 1096-620X (ISSN-L)
- 1557-7600
- OpenAlex
- W1980037982
- Cited by
- 127
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 6 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 0.63
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Medicinal Food (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › Antifungal resistance and susceptibility
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Essential Oils and Antimicrobial Activity
- Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Inorganic Chemistry › Coconut Research and Applications
- Keywords
- virgin coconut oil, Candida, antifungal activity, Candida albicans, Candida krusei, Candida glabrata, Candida tropicalis, Candida parapsilosis, Candida stellatoidea, fluconazole, minimum inhibitory concentration, drug resistance, clinical isolates, fungal infection
- MeSH terms
- Coconut Oil, Antifungal Agents, Candida, Candida albicans, Humans, Microbial Sensitivity Tests, Nigeria, Plant Oils, Species Specificity, Fluconazole, Drug Resistance, Fungal, Candida tropicalis, Candida glabrata
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