Isolation and antimicrobial activity of secondary metabolites of pothos tener wall

The Pothos genus is extensively utilised in traditional medicine in China and India. An underexplored species of Pothos tener Wall was identified in Sulawesi, Indonesia. Antimicrobial activity was assessed using microdilutions and streak plates against Staphylococcus aureus, Eschericia coli, Aeromonas hydrophila, Aspergillus niger, and Candida albicans. Significant effectiveness was observed in the methanol extract, as indicated by the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) values for three different extracts (methanol, ethyl acetate, and n-hexane) of P. tener. The isolates obtained were structurally analysed using Ultraviolet (UV)-spectroscopy, Fourier-transform Infra Red-Spectroscopy (FT-IR), Mass Spectroscopy (MS), Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), and antimicrobial testing after undergoing fractionation and subfractionation. The isolate obtained was stigmasterol with moderate antimicrobial activity against A. niger and A. hydrophila, with MIC equivalent to MBC of 500 µg/ml. The first report of stigmasterol from P. tener has potent antimicrobial properties, bolstering empirical data in this field.