Verification of Antibacterial Activities of Oriental Herbal Medicine Extracts

Abstract

The antibacterial activities of nine oriental herbal medicine extracts were measured against seven kinds of bacteria known to cause food poisoning and disease. The extracts were prepared with distilled water using an autoclave (121℃ for 30 min). The extraction yields of nine oriental herbal medicines were in the rage of 0.5%-33.4%. The antibacterial activities were evaluated using the paper-disc method. Extracts of Hwangryeon, Jiyu, and Ohbaeja showed antibacterial activities while the others did not. Extracts of Coptis japonica, Hwangryeon, and Sanguisorba officinalis, Jiyu showed antibacterial activities only against Clostridium perfringens and Listeria monocytogenes. Extracts of Rhus javanica, Ohbaeja showed the strongest antibacterial activities against all the bacteria tested. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of R. javanica extracts were in the range of 2.4~20 mg/ml for the bacteria tested. In conclusion, the extract of R. javanica showed superior antibacterial activities against the seven bacterial strains tested. The MIC and MBC values for each bacterium were represented as strain names (MIC, MBC), which were Bacillus cereus (11.2, 20), Clostridium perfringens (2.4, 4.7), Escherichia coli (9.1, 9.1), Listeria monocytogenes (11.1, 20), Salmonella typhi (4.7, 9.1), Staphylococcus aureus (2.4, 4.7), and Vibrio parahaemolyticus (2.4, 5.3). Further purification and study of this antibacterial material would be helpful for developing antibiotics or promoting synergistic effects with known antibiotics, producing antibacterial material for lengthening the shelf-life of food, and so on.