Screening for Antioxidant and Antibacterial potential of common medicinal plants in the treatment of Acne

In the present study, sequential extracts of Camellia sinensis, Glycyrrhiza glabra, Calendula officinalis and Linum usitatissimum were analyzed for their antioxidant activity in different test systems. Phytochemical analysis indicated that amongst twelve test extracts, methanolic extract of Camellia sinensis was found to have the highest total phenolic content (104.93 ± 1.630 mg GAE /g) and FRAP value (1046.330±1.948 mg TE/g). Flavonoid content (115.503±2.984 mg RuE /g dry extract) of methanolic extract of Glycyrrhiza glabra was found to be superior among all the extracts. Highest DPPH scavenging (IC50=44.03 ±1.784 μg/ml) effect was also observed in methanolic extracts of Camellia sinensis. In vitro antimicrobial screening indicated that methanolic extracts showed promising antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis and Propionibacterium acnes. *Corresponding author, Mailing address: Gupta Rajinder K Email Id: [email protected] Article History:-----------------------Date of Submission: 22-08-2011 Date of Acceptance: 08-10-2011 Source of Support: All India Council of Technical Education & University Grant Commission F U L L L e n g t h R e s e a r c h P a p e r C o v e r e d i n I n d e x C o p e r n i c u s w i t h I C V a l u e 4 .6 8 f o r 2 0 1 0 Int. J. Drug Dev. & Res., Jan-March 2012, 4 (1): 65-71 Covered in Scopus & Embase, Elsevier 65 the acne lesions and constantly release inflammatory mediators such as reactive oxygen species (ROS) [2]. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) namely hydroxyl (•OH) and super oxide (O2) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) like nitrous oxide (N2O) nitroxyl anion (NO-) are the most common free radicals. These toxic ROS can also act as a messenger in the induction of several biological responses such as NF-kB and AP-1. These radicals are formed with the reduction of oxygen to water. Normally, the production of these radicals is slow and they are removed naturally by the antioxidant enzymes like superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) existing in the cell, but due to depletion of immune system and natural antioxidants in different ailments, it becomes necessary to use antioxidants as free radical scavengers for removal of ROS to reduce cell damage that occurs during acne inflammation [3]. Antioxidant compounds have the ability to capture, deactivate and repair the damage caused by free radicals (Alonso et al., 2002) [4]. Hence, the objective of the present study was to investigate antioxidant potential of the following four medicinal plants viz: Camellia sinensis [5] Glycyrrhiza glabra [6] Calendula officinalis [7,8] and Linum usitatissimum possessing antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory potential also. Materials and Methods Plant materials and chemicals Fresh and dried plant materials were collected from medicinal gardens and authorized herbal stores in Delhi. Their botanical identities were determined and authenticated at the National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources (NISCAIR), New Delhi, India vide voucher specimen NISCAIR/RHM/consult/2007-08/936/120 and NISCAIR/RHM/consult/2008-09/978/09. Clindamycin phosphate was procured from Sri Ram Institute of Industrial Research, New Delhi. All other chemicals used were of analytical grade and obtained from either Sigma-Aldrich or Merck. Preparation of Extracts and Phytochemical