The Antifungal Effects of Tea Tree Oil as a Potential Therapeutic Candidate for Candida-related Infections in Albino Rats

Fungal infection is an irritating problem because of the limited number of antifungal drugs and their adverse reactions. Moreover, in the past few years, the resistance of Candida to the existing antifungals has been observed.

The study sample consisted of 60 male albino rats. Group I received a physiological solution. Group II was subjected to systemic antibiotic treatment 1 week before the application of Candida infused on the tongue dorsum. Group III was subjected to systemic antibiotics, as was group II, for 3 consecutive days, and tea tree oil was applied throughout the experimental period. Ten rats from each group were sacrificed at five and seven weeks and tongue specimens were dissected and prepared for histological and transmission electron microscopic examination.

Histological and TEM results in group II after five and seven weeks revealed marked degenerative changes in the dorsal surface of the rat tongue. Nonetheless, in group III, obvious regeneration of epithelial tongue tissue appeared after seven weeks of treatment with oil.

Tree oil showed antifungal properties against Candida infection, which was confirmed by ultrastructural examination.