Antifungal activity of illicium verum extracts on candida sp. / Nur Ashikin Ahmad Hisham

Illicium verum has been used as a spice in cooking from a long time ago. It can be found in Southern China and also the rest of the part of the world. Illicium verum has the potential of antimicrobial activity due to its chemical compound which is trans-anethole. Meanwhile Candida sp. is a fungal that has yeast properties that can cause infection on human skin. The Illicium verum is being tested on the Candida sp. Two types of extractions which were methanol extract and water extract were being used to compare the effectiveness between those two. Next, potato dextrose agar (PDA) is being used to grow the fungus. Then, antifungal assay was being done by agar well diffusion method. The result is methanol extract starting from concentration at 64 mg/ml to 72 mg/ml of methanol showed the antifungal activity. This can be deduce that Illicium verum has the capability to inhibit the Candida sp. Water extraction showed no inhibition zone. This can be concluded that methanol extract is better than water as a solvent.