STUDIES ON ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF MEDICINAL PLANTS AGAINST HUMAN PATHOGENS

The Indian folk medicine practice is based on the use of plant extracts. Many phytochemicals like alkaloids,flavonoids,steroids, phenolics, terpenoids and saponins are isolated from the roots of medicinal plants like Ruellia tuberosa L. and Alangium salvifolium (L.F.) Wang. The plant and plant products are known for their therapeutic uses from thousands of years. In folk medicine it has been used as diuretic, Antipyretic, antidiabetic and analgesic agent. The plants are being used as medicinal plants as it is effective against many infectious diseases. The Ruellia tuberosa L. of family Acanthaceae and Alangium salvifolium (L.F.) of family Alangiaceae were studied for its antibacterial properties against pathogenic bacteria . During the present study Aqueous and Methanolic extract of roots of Ruellia tuberosa L. and root extract of Alangium salvifolium (L.F.) are used. Root extracts were evaluated for their antibacterial activity. The antibacterial study was carried out by disc diffusion method against the pathogens Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus auerus, Salmonella typhi, Proteus vulgaris and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Escherichia coli. To evaluate the antibacterial activity methanol and aqueous extracts were used. The maximum zone of inhibition was observed in methanol extract as compared to aqueous extract for each bacterium was as Methanolic extract of roots of medicinal plants showed the zone of inhibition against the studied bacteria were S.typhi (12 mm), K. pneumoniae (15 mm), Proteus vulgaris (22 mm), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (18 mm) and Staphylococcus aureus(14 mm), and Escherichia coli.(12 mm).The present study demonstrates that the selected medicinal plants have antibacterial potential.