In vitro antimicrobial activity of crude extracts of some medicinal plants from Al-Baha region in Saudi Arabia

Medicinal plants are the wealthy source of antibacterial agents and curatives. There is an urgent need for new antimicrobial agents, so the antimicrobial activity for Ruta graveolens L. and Ficus carica Linn. Crude extracts were evaluated for its inhibitory activity against some disease causing selected microorganisms. Root extract of Ruta graveolens L gave 8 and 7 mm inhibition zone against Escherichia coli 254607 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa 254992 respectively. Latex of Ficus carica Linn plants showed that it is a good inhibitor for Candida albicans 254625; whereas the rest of microorganisms (Escherichia coli 254607, Proteus mirabilis 257440, Microsporium canis, Staphylococcus aureus 254996, Klebsiella pneumoniae 254656 and Staphylococcus epidermidis 254997) gave almost a similar inhibition zone around 2-3 mm. The tested crude extract from Ruta graveolens L. and Ficus carica Linn. have proved to be promising treating agents against the tested pathogenic microbes, but it needs to be concentrated and furthermore evaluated.