ANTIMICROBIAL ACTION OF THE LEAF EXTRACT OF Lagerstroemia parviflora Roxb

Area of Science:

• Pharmacognosy
• Microbiology
• Natural Product Chemistry

Background:

• Lagerstroemia paviflora Roxb is a plant species with traditional medicinal uses.
• Antibiotic resistance necessitates the search for novel antimicrobial compounds.
• Plant extracts are a rich source of potential therapeutic agents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the antibacterial activity of the benzene extract of Lagerstroemia paviflora Roxb leaves.
• To determine the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) against a panel of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
• To compare the efficacy of the extract with the standard antibiotic Ciprofloxacin.

Main Methods:

• Preparation of benzene extract from Lagerstroemia paviflora Roxb leaves.
• Determination of Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) using broth microdilution or agar diffusion assays.
• Measurement of zones of inhibition for the crude extract and Ciprofloxacin against selected bacterial strains.

Main Results:

• The benzene extract exhibited inhibitory activity against tested Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Lactobacillus arabinosus) and Gram-negative bacteria (Klebsiella pneumoniae, E.Coli, Shigella dysenteriae, shigella sonnei, shigella boydii, Salmonella typhimurium, Proteus mirabilis, Vibrio cholerae).
• Zones of inhibition were observed for the extract against four selected bacterial strains.
• Comparative analysis showed varying degrees of efficacy between the plant extract and Ciprofloxacin.

Conclusions:

• The benzene extract of Lagerstroemia paviflora Roxb possesses significant antibacterial properties.
• The extract demonstrates potential as a source for developing new antimicrobial drugs.
• Further research is warranted to isolate and characterize the active compounds responsible for the observed antibacterial effects.