Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic Bacteria

Introduction. Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest threats of the 21st century. Scientists search for potential antimicrobial sources that can cope with antibiotic resistance. Plants used in traditional medicine can be identified as potential candidates for the synthesis of novel drug compou...

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Main Authors: Manikkuwadura Hasara Nethmini De Zoysa, Hasanga Rathnayake, Ruwani Punyakanthi Hewawasam, Weerasinghe Mudiyanselage Dilip Gaya Bandara Wijayaratne
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2019-01-01
Series:International Journal of Microbiology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2019/7431439
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author Manikkuwadura Hasara Nethmini De Zoysa
Hasanga Rathnayake
Ruwani Punyakanthi Hewawasam
Weerasinghe Mudiyanselage Dilip Gaya Bandara Wijayaratne
author_facet Manikkuwadura Hasara Nethmini De Zoysa
Hasanga Rathnayake
Ruwani Punyakanthi Hewawasam
Weerasinghe Mudiyanselage Dilip Gaya Bandara Wijayaratne
author_sort Manikkuwadura Hasara Nethmini De Zoysa
collection DOAJ
description Introduction. Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest threats of the 21st century. Scientists search for potential antimicrobial sources that can cope with antibiotic resistance. Plants used in traditional medicine can be identified as potential candidates for the synthesis of novel drug compounds to act against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Objective. To determine the potential antimicrobial effects of ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts of five Sri Lankan medicinal plants against four human pathogens. Methods. Asparagus falcatus (tubers), Asteracantha longifolia (whole plant), Vetiveria zizanioides (roots), Epaltes divaricata (whole plant), and Coriandrum sativum (seeds) were used in the study. Plant extracts were screened against four clinically important Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains, Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC 700603). Antibacterial activity of plant extracts were monitored using the agar disc diffusion method. Eight concentrations of each positive plant extract were used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) by 5-fold dilution of plant extracts yielding a serial dilution of the original extract. Results. Ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts of E. divaricata gave the maximum zones of inhibition of 16.3 mm, 7.4 mm, and 13.7 mm and MIC values of 0.48 mg/ml, 1.2 mg/ml, and 1.6 mg/ml, respectively, against S. aureus. Ethanol and hexane extracts of V. zizanioides gave the maximum zones of inhibition of 12.1 mm and 11.4 mm and MIC values 2.4 mg/ml and 0.003 mg/ml, respectively, against S. aureus. None of the other plants were effective against any microorganism used for the study. Conclusions. It can be concluded that E. divaricata and V. zizanioides crude ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts exhibited significant in vitro antibacterial activity against S. aureus, and the active compounds isolated from them can be potential sources for the synthesis of antibacterial drugs.
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spelling doaj-art-632fd91dcf9945948e27e90766612ca42025-02-03T01:01:40ZengWileyInternational Journal of Microbiology1687-918X1687-91982019-01-01201910.1155/2019/74314397431439Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic BacteriaManikkuwadura Hasara Nethmini De Zoysa0Hasanga Rathnayake1Ruwani Punyakanthi Hewawasam2Weerasinghe Mudiyanselage Dilip Gaya Bandara Wijayaratne3Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, University of Ruhuna, Galle, Sri LankaDepartment of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ruhuna, Galle, Sri LankaDepartment of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ruhuna, Galle, Sri LankaDepartment of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ruhuna, Galle, Sri LankaIntroduction. Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest threats of the 21st century. Scientists search for potential antimicrobial sources that can cope with antibiotic resistance. Plants used in traditional medicine can be identified as potential candidates for the synthesis of novel drug compounds to act against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Objective. To determine the potential antimicrobial effects of ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts of five Sri Lankan medicinal plants against four human pathogens. Methods. Asparagus falcatus (tubers), Asteracantha longifolia (whole plant), Vetiveria zizanioides (roots), Epaltes divaricata (whole plant), and Coriandrum sativum (seeds) were used in the study. Plant extracts were screened against four clinically important Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains, Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC 700603). Antibacterial activity of plant extracts were monitored using the agar disc diffusion method. Eight concentrations of each positive plant extract were used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) by 5-fold dilution of plant extracts yielding a serial dilution of the original extract. Results. Ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts of E. divaricata gave the maximum zones of inhibition of 16.3 mm, 7.4 mm, and 13.7 mm and MIC values of 0.48 mg/ml, 1.2 mg/ml, and 1.6 mg/ml, respectively, against S. aureus. Ethanol and hexane extracts of V. zizanioides gave the maximum zones of inhibition of 12.1 mm and 11.4 mm and MIC values 2.4 mg/ml and 0.003 mg/ml, respectively, against S. aureus. None of the other plants were effective against any microorganism used for the study. Conclusions. It can be concluded that E. divaricata and V. zizanioides crude ethanol, aqueous, and hexane extracts exhibited significant in vitro antibacterial activity against S. aureus, and the active compounds isolated from them can be potential sources for the synthesis of antibacterial drugs.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2019/7431439
spellingShingle Manikkuwadura Hasara Nethmini De Zoysa
Hasanga Rathnayake
Ruwani Punyakanthi Hewawasam
Weerasinghe Mudiyanselage Dilip Gaya Bandara Wijayaratne
Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic Bacteria
International Journal of Microbiology
title Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic Bacteria
title_full Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic Bacteria
title_fullStr Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic Bacteria
title_full_unstemmed Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic Bacteria
title_short Determination of In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Five Sri Lankan Medicinal Plants against Selected Human Pathogenic Bacteria
title_sort determination of in vitro antimicrobial activity of five sri lankan medicinal plants against selected human pathogenic bacteria
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2019/7431439
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AT ruwanipunyakanthihewawasam determinationofinvitroantimicrobialactivityoffivesrilankanmedicinalplantsagainstselectedhumanpathogenicbacteria
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