PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF MEDICINAL PLANTS WITH ANTIBACTERIAL PROPERTIES
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53555/eijbps.v11i1.60Keywords:
Phytochemicals, Antibacterial activity, Medicinal plantsAbstract
The worldwide increase of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains requires immediate development of alternative antimicrobial medicines. Medical plants possess therapeutic properties because of their bioactive phytochemicals which demonstrate antimicrobial action. Secondary metabolites produced by plants including alkaloids and flavonoids and tannins and saponins and terpenoids demonstrate inhibitory properties against different harmful microorganisms. The analysis of antibacterial medicinal plants in this study evaluates their potential to combat Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli bacterial infections. The conventional qualitative and quantitative techniques were used for phytochemical screening to detect important secondary metabolites. Scientists utilized the disc diffusion method to measure inhibition zone widths for evaluating antibacterial activities of these plant extracts. They conducted the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) assay to find the lowest effective concentration which halted bacterial growth. Plants containing elevated levels of alkaloids together with phenolic chemicals and flavonoids demonstrated the strongest antibacterial properties. Two of the selected plants demonstrated significant inhibitory properties against S. aureus and E. coli through their active compounds in Ocimum sanctum (holy basil) and Curcuma longa (turmeric).
These findings demonstrate the potential of medicinal plants strong in phytochemicals as a viable natural antibacterial agent source. These bioactive substances work by disrupting bacterial membranes, inhibiting enzymes, and interfering with the creation of proteins. These plant-derived chemicals may be utilized as supplemental or alternative antimicrobial agents to treat bacterial infections, especially those brought on by drug-resistant strains, due to their natural origin and broad-spectrum activity. In order to create plant-based antibacterial medicines, more study on the separation, purification, and structural characterisation of these phytochemicals as well as their therapeutic uses would be essential.
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