Polyaniline/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite inhibits the growth of Candida albicans 077 by ROS production

In recent years, polyaniline/CoFe2O4 nanocomposites have gained attention because of their wide utilization in optoelectronics and biomedical studies. However, very limited research has been carried out on the anticandidal activity of polyaniline/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite against Candida spp. Thus, the study was designed to investigate the anticandidal potential of PANI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite against Candida albicans 077. PANI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite (denoted as cfPNCs) was synthesized by polymerization of aniline in the presence of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles. The structural and thermal properties of the synthesized PANI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite were investigated. It was noteworthy that PANI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite showed promising anticandidal activity in a dose-dependent manner. Results also showed that the protection of histidine (a ROS quencher) against ROS clearly suggested the implication of ROS in anticandidal activity of PANI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite. It is encouraging to conclude that PANI/CoFe2O4 nanocomposite bears the potential of their applications in biomedicine, especially nanotherapy for diseases caused by C. albicans. (C) 2013 Academie des sciences. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.