Abstract
Infections caused by Staphylococcus genus bacteria remain a relevant problem due to the high percentage of antibiotic-resistant biofilm-forming strains of isolates of this genus. Herbs are a promising source for many biologically active compounds with antimicrobial properties. The aim of the research was to study the antimicrobial and antibiofilm formation activity of berry and leaf extracts of Vaccinium vitis-idaea L. upon clinical isolates of S. aureus, and the main biochemical properties of these extracts. For the purpose of analysis, we used S. aureus isolated from the mouth cavities and pharynx of human patients suffering from inflammatory diseases. The plants for the study were gathered in Pylypets, Mizhhiria rayon, Zakarpatska oblast (Transcarpathia). From Vaccinium vitis-idaea L., leaf and berry extracts were produced. To determine the chemical properties of the extracts, the following constituents were investigated: total tannin, flavonoids, total phenols, anthocyanins (by spectrophotometric method), and the total amount of vitamin C in berry extract (chromatographically). The antimicrobial activity was studied by diffusion-into-agar method and determination of minimum inhibitory concentrations. The antibiofilm activity of the extracts was tested in standard 96-well microtitration plates. The main chemical composition of ethyl extracts of Vaccinium vitis-idaea L. berries and leaves was identified. The level of tannins in leaf extracts was established to be higher than in fruit extracts (3.50% and 0.26% per 100 g of extract, respectively). It was shown that extracts of V. vitis-idaea berries and leaves demonstrate high antimicrobial activity against clinical isolates of S. aureus. Further it was established that leaf extracts had high ability to destroy the bacterial biofilm of S. aureus. Leaf extracts were also able to destroy the formed biofilm. Even in the 0.01% concentration, leaf extract inhibited the formation of the biofilm by 69.9% and caused the destruction of the formed biofilm by 62.5%. Thereby, the obtained results show good prospects for the use of V. vitis-idaea leaf extracts as an anti-staphylococcal remedy with antibiofilm forming properties.
Highlights
The rapid development of resistance of microorganisms to antibiotics has become a difficult issue for biology and medicine (Nikolaidis et al, 2012; Nikolaidis et al, 2014; Belbase et al, 2017)
The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of leaf and berry extracts against typical isolates equalled 2.5 mg/mL, whereas it grew by 1.5 times reaching 3.75 mg/mL when taken against MRSA
The results of the study of the antibiofilm formation activity of the extracts are shown in Figures 1 and 2
Summary
The rapid development of resistance of microorganisms to antibiotics has become a difficult issue for biology and medicine (Nikolaidis et al, 2012; Nikolaidis et al, 2014; Belbase et al, 2017). Special attention has been paid to the mechanisms and causes of development of resistance to antimicrobial preparations and to the ways of overcoming it. Existence of bacteria in the form of biofilm as an elaborate community that occurs both in the environment and in the human organism is one of the causes of formation of chronic persisting inflammatory processes (Romanova & Gintsburg, 2011). Biofilm formation complicates the course of the infection process because bacteria in the biofilm structure acquire resistance to such environmental factors as temperature, pH indicators, on the one hand, and to antibiotics used to treat infections, on the other hand. The role of S. haemolyticus and S. epidermidis in the formation of inflammatory processes has been growing over the past years (Patel et al, 2012; Fey & Olson, 2008)
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