Production and characterization of humic acids nanoparticles and evaluation of its fungicidal effect aiming the onychomycosis treatment

• Grant number: 13/05525-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: August 01, 2013
• End date: November 30, 2015
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Maria Helena Andrade Santana
• Grantee: Fernanda Lopes Motta
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia Química (FEQ). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Humic acids (HA) are organic macromolecules with numerous properties and high structural complexity. These acids have prophylactic and therapeutic activities, such as antiviral, pro-fibrinolytic, anti-inflammatory and estrogen, and are able to prevent stomach and intestinal problems, contribute to increased immunity, and protect against some cancers. Moreover, AH were recently recognized for their fungicide effect, especially those from empty fruit bunch (EFB), a waste of oil palm processing which is currently underutilized or discarded, to which there is a growing interest in adding value. Considering the incentive and the increasing production of oil palm production in tropical countries including Brazil, which expects to be the largest producer of palm fruit in the coming years, the production of medicinal compounds from this agroindustrial waste becomes attractive. In this context, the objective of this work is to investigate and compare the inhibitory effect of AH (commercial and obtained by fermentation of EFB) on germination and growth of fungi related to the occurrence of onychomycosis. Onychomycosis is a major worldwide onychopathies, where the deficiencies of his current treatment indicate the necessity to develop an effective treatment. This approach involves the characterization of HA composition and the production of HA particles by nanoprecipitation to prevent its aggregation and disperse them in hydrophilic medium, besides increasing the surface area in relation to the free HA, thus benefiting its interaction with tissues and cells. The proposed research is innovative relative to the extrapolation of the investigation of the fungicidal effect of HA on onychomycosis, since only study with phytopathogenic microorganisms are found in the literature, and to production of HA nanoparticles, for which are not found scientific production, with the potential to generate new products.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

GOMES DE MELO, BRUNA ALICE; MOTTA, FERNANDA LOPES; ANDRADE SANTANA, MARIA HELENA. Humic acids: Structural properties and multiple functionalities for novel technological developments. Materials Science & Engineering C-Materials for Biological Applications, v. 62, p. 967-974, MAY 1 2016. (13/05525-4)