Preliminary phytochemical screening and in vitro antibacterial activity of Bauhinia variegata Linn. against human pathogens

Abstract

ObjectiveTo investigate the antimicrobial and phytochemical properties of hydromethanolic extracts of Bauhinia variegata Linn. (B. variegata) (leaf, stem bark and flower) to justify the traditional claim endowed upon this herbal drug as a rasayana in Ayurveda. This study thus can be further utilized to formulate the natural antioxidant which can be used as a dietary supplement to fight against several diseases such as cancer, ageing, arthrosclerosis, etc. MethodsThe study showed that the number of different phytoconstituents present in the plant which makes it remarkable for its use by traditional practitioners. On the another set of experiment, the hydromethanolic extract of B. variegata (leaf, stem bark and flower) were evaluated against Gram-positive and Gram-negative by using disk diffusion assay. ResultsPhytochemical screening of all extracts showed the presence of alkaloids, steroids, phenolic compounds, tannins, saponin, carbohydrates, proteins, amino acids and organic acids. The antibacterial activity of all the extracts (leaf, stem bark and flower) of B. variegata was determined by agar well diffusion method at four different concentrations i.e., 1 000 mg/mL, 750 mg/mL, 500 mg/mL and 250 mg/mL using Gram-positive Bacillus subtilius, Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus epidermidis and Gram-negative Escherichia coli, Shegilla flexineria, Pseudomonas auriginosa bacteria. ConclusionsThese studies show that hydromethanolic extracts of B. variegata (leaf, stem bark and flower) inhibited the growth of microorganism's in dose dependently. B. variegata leaf, stem bark and flower extracts have several phytochemical constituents who possess the antimicrobial activity. A tiny amount of data is presented, as the preliminary antimicrobial properties of the B. variegata here accessed, under the urgent necessity of new antibiotics in the market and in face of the increased resistance of infectious microorganisms to antimicrobials.