Phytochemical Screening and Antimicrobial Activity of Various Extracts of Aerial Parts of Rhanterium epapposum

Saravanan Rajendrasozhan,Hani El Moll,Ramy M Romeilah,Hossam S El-Beltagi,Emad A Shalaby,Kareem M Younes,Mejdi Snoussi

doi:10.3390/pr9081351

Saravanan Rajendrasozhan, Hani El Moll + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9081351

Copy DOI

Abstract

Rhanterium epapposum, native to the Arabian Peninsula, is traditionally used to cure skin infections. The objective is to screen the phytochemical content and antimicrobial activity of aqueous, methanol and 80% methanol extracts of aerial parts of R. epapposum. The phytochemical screening of aqueous, methanolic, and 80% methanol extracts of R. epapposum was conducted using gas chromatographymass spectrometry. The antimicrobial activities of the extracts were assessed by well diffusion and microdilution methods. Qualitative phytochemical analysis revealed the presence of 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol in all three extracts, whereas ethanol, 2-methoxy-, acetate; n-hexadecanoic acid; and 2,3-butanediol are present in higher amount exclusively in the methanol, 80% methanol and aqueous extracts of the aerial parts of R. epapposum, respectively. The highest antibacterial activity was shown by the aqueous extract S. aureus, P. aeruginosa, E. cloacae, and K. pneumoniae, methanolic extract against S. aureus, methicillin-resistant S. aureus, and E. coli, and 80% methanol extract against S. epidermidis, and S. paucimobilis. Interestingly, 80% methanol extracts showed the highest antifungal activity against C. albicans, C. guillermondii, C. vaginalis, C. utilis, and C. tropicalis. The aerial parts of R. epapposum showed broad-spread antimicrobial activity against bacteria and fungi. Especially, the 80% methanol extract showed potent antifungal activity against all the tested fungal strains.

Highlights

Microbial infections and the emergence of drug-resistance microbes have become one of the biggest challenges worldwide
The results revealed that the R. epapposum extracts exhibited a wide antimicrobial spectrum, against tested bacteria and fungi with the inhibition zone diameter fluctuant from 14.67 to 44.67 mm
The aqueous extract of aerial parts of R. epapposum showed the highest antibacterial activity against many of the tested bacterial strains, whereas Adam et al [13] reported that the aqueous extract of aerial parts of R. epapposum does not have any antibacterial activity

Summary

Introduction

Microbial infections and the emergence of drug-resistance microbes have become one of the biggest challenges worldwide. Microbial infections cause millions of deaths every year because of the limited number of effective drugs in the market and the side effects of synthetic antibiotics [1]. For the management of microbial infections in humans, it is necessary to find new antimicrobial substances directed at new drug targets. Already some plants or plant-derived chemicals are used commercially as antimicrobial drugs [1]. About 250,000 to 500,000 plant species exist on Earth [6], only a limited number of plants have been studied for their medicinal use. Research focuses on identifying herbal-based antimicrobial agents, and its phytochemical screening has accelerated in recent years

Objectives

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion