# Antifungal properties of carvone and linalool against Malassezia species: Preliminary Screening Study

## TL;DR

This study explores the antifungal effects of carvone and linalool against Malassezia species, suggesting they could be used to treat fungal infections like pityriasis versicolor.

## Contribution

The study provides preliminary evidence of carvone and linalool's antifungal activity against Malassezia species using an optimized in vitro method.

## Key findings

- Linalool and carvone showed minimum inhibitory concentration ranges of 0.3-5.4 mg/mL and 0.3-24 mg/mL, respectively.
- Malassezia species growth was inhibited at low concentrations of amphotericin B and ketoconazole.
- Carvone and linalool demonstrated potential as alternative treatments for Malassezia infections.

## Abstract

By harnessing the power of nature, researchers can potentially discover new therapeutic options that are safe, effective, and sustainable for the management of diseases. Recently, natural products have been extensively studied for the treatment of diseases due to their diverse chemical composition and potential therapeutic properties.
Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the antifungal activity of carvone and linalool against Malassezia species to find alternative treatments for pityriasis versicolor.

The in vitro antifungal activity of monoterpenes was assessed using a microdilution method, following the guidelines specified in the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute
document M27-A3 with modifications, including the use of Christensen’s urea broth supplemented with various lipids to optimize the growth condition for Malassezia.

The minimum inhibitory concentration ranges for linalool and carvone were found to be 0.3-5.4 and 0.3-24 mg/mL, respectively. Additionally, the growth of Malassezia species was inhibited at concentrations of 0.001-0.003 and 0.006-0.1 mg/mL for amphotericin B and ketoconazole, respectively.

Given the remarkable antifungal properties exhibited by linalool and carvone against Malassezia species, these terpene compounds have the potential to be
utilized for the treatment of Malassezia infections, provided that additional research is conducted.