Anti-dermaptophyte activity of phenolic compounds in 'Mokusaku-eki'

Abstract

'Mokusaku-eki,' a kind of pyroligneous acid, is a dark brown color solution obtained from the charcoal burner of such Quercus spp. woods as a by-product. This is used as a folk medicine in water eczema. The n-hexane function of this solution contained several phenolic compounds such as 4- ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (3) and 2,6-dimethoxyphenol (4), which could not be found in the fresh woods. Among these compounds, 3 has the highest anti- dermaptophyte activity against Trichophyton mentagrophytes at minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) 150 μg/ml.