Terbinafine hydrochloride intercalated in montmorillonite: synthesis and characterization

The novel antifungal hybrid of terbinafine hydrochloride (TER-HCl)/montmorillonite was synthesized by the intercalation method under mechanical stirring. Intercalation of TER-HCl in the MMT galleries was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectra, elemental analysis (EA). and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The results from IR, TGA, and EA showed a difference in chemical composition of the MMT and the TER-HCl/MMT. XRD analysis showed that the basal spacing of montmorillonite significantly expanded from 1.53 to 2.79 nm. TER-HCl was successfully intercalated into the interlayer of MMT, and 28 % of TER-HCl was released after 48 h in 0.9 % (w/v) NaCl aqueous solution (pH 7) at 37 +/- A 0.5 A degrees C. The antifungal activity of the hybrid against Candida albicans was evaluated using the inhibitory zone method and the minimum inhibitory concentration. The TER-HCl/MMT strongly inhibited C. albicans. These results show that TER-HCl/MMT can be useful in biomedical applications.