Explore Antifungal Green Ingredients for Cosmetic Preservation

Fungi can be single-celled or very complex multicellular organisms. They are found in nearly every habitat, but prefer to live on land—in soil and plant material—rather than in aquatic environments. Some are parasites of plants, such as mildews, whereas a small number can cause skin diseases such as athlete’s foot, ringworm and thrush.

Fungi are subdivided according to their life cycle, their morphology and the type of spores they produce. The three major groups are:

• multicellular filamentous moulds
• macroscopic filamentous fungi
• yeasts

The ones usually of interest to cosmetic scientists are:

• Candida albicans — a yeast common on mucous membranes
• Aspergillus brasiliensis — can cause a lung infection (aspergillosis) in people with a compromised immune system

Antifungal ingredients are those that kill fungi or inhibit their growth, helping protect a formulation against spoilage by yeasts and moulds. This category gathers ingredients reported to have antifungal activity against specific strains—bear in mind that suppliers test against a limited panel of organisms, so efficacy data reflects only the fungi actually challenged, not all fungi. Always check which strains were tested and validate performance in your own formulation, typically alongside antibacterial actives for full broad-spectrum protection.