Antimicrobial Activity of Medicinal Plants against Human Pathogenic Bacteria

An attempt was made to analyse the antimicrobial potential of 2 medicinally important plants viz., Lagerstroemia indica and Annona reticulata leaf extracts against human bacterial pathogens viz., Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus auerus, Salmonella typhi, Proteus vulgaris and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Antimicrobial study was carried out by disc diffusion method against the pathogens by using the methanol and aqueous extracts. The result of the present study showed the presence of wide spectrum of antibacterial activities against all the above bacterial pathogens studied. The maximum zone of inhibition observed in methanol extract compared to aqueous extract for each bacterium was as follows. S. typhi (12 mm), K. Pneumoniae(13 mm), P. vulgaris (20 mm), P. aeruginosa (12 mm) and S. aureus (12mm). The present study demonstrates that the selected medicinal plants are potentially good sources of antibacterial against the pathogens viz., K. Pneumoniae, S. auerus, S. typhi, P. vulgaris and P. aeruginosa. The phytochemical screening demonstrated the presence of different types of compounds like terpenoids, tannins, deoxy sugars, saponins, phenolic compouns, and flavonoids which may contribute for the antimicrobial action of the above medicinal plants.