Antifungal Activity of Dried Extracts of Anise (Pimpinella anisum L.) and Star anise (Illicium verum Hook. f.) Against Dermatophyte and Saprophyte Fungi

Medicinal plants synthesize a vast array of secondary metabolites thatare important for human life. for medicinal purpose, antimicrobial activity of substancesderived from plant extracts has been recognized for many years. pimpinella anisum l.(apiaceae) and illicium verum hook. f. (illiciaceae) plant species, have been used fortreatment of infectious diseases in iranian traditional medicine.objective: in this study methanol extracts of pimpinella anisum l. (apiaceae) andillicium verum hook. f. (illiciaceae), were tested for their potential antifungal activities.methods: methanolic extracts were dried by freeze drying method, minimuminhibitory concentration (mic) was was determined according to agar dilution methodand minimum fungicidal concentration (mfc) was determined by incorporatingvarious concentrations of extracts (2-256 mg/ml) in sabouraud dextrose agar (sda) intubes against 4 dermatophyte and one saprophyte fungi.results: the extracts of anise seeds inhibited only dermatophyte species, while extractsof star anise fruits inhibited growth of all dermatophytes and saprophytes. mic andmfc for each extracts were different and mfc was higher than mic for all species.conclusion: as a result of this experiment, these plants can be candidate for furtherstudies due to their antifungal potencies.