I NTERNATIONAL J OURNAL OF P HARMACY & L IFE S CIENCES Antimicrobial activities of Bridelia retusa ( L . ) Spreng . belonging to family Euphorbiaceae

The in vitro antimicrobial activity of the crude methanolic and ethanolic leaf extract of Bridelia retusa (L.) Spreng. was studied against four gram negative and two gram positive bacteria. The results showed that both the extracts showed antimicrobial activity. Maximum zone of inhibition was observed in the methanolic extract against Escherichia coli which was 29.5 ± 0.50. However, ethanolic extract showed least activity against Staphylococcus aureus. The basis of this plant extract in the traditional treatment of diarrhea in human is highlighted. Key-Words: Bridelia retusa, Antimicrobial activity, Euphorbiaceae Introduction Herbal use in the treatment of animal and human diseases has long been recognized. Most plant extracts have been shown to possess anti-microbial agents active against micro organisms in vitro. These plants contain medicinal properties which make them effective to cure or prevent diseases (Wisdom and Shittu, 2010). It is anticipated that about 80% of the population use traditional medicine for their primary health care in developing countries (Mahmood et al., 2011, Khan & Khan 2004 and Khan and Chagtai (1979). There arises a need to screen medicinal plants for bioactive compounds as a basis for further pharmacological studies. In recent years, multiple drug resistance in both human and plant pathogenic microorganisms have been developed due to arbitrary use of commercial antimicrobial drugs commonly used in the treatment of transmittable diseases. This situation has forced scientists to search new antimicrobial substances in various sources like medicinal plants (Jeyachandran et al., 2010). Ekdania (Bridelia retusa L.) is a monoecious, deciduous plant belonging to family Euphorbiaceae that can grow to 810 m in height. Euphorbiaceae family in the plant kingdom is a complex hetero-geneous family consisting of about 322 genera and 8900 species in the world (Singh et al., 2011). Little is known about the biological activity of most species of the genus