Antimicrobial Activity of Terminalia bellerica Leaf and Stem Collected from Two Different Sites

Terminalia bellerica belonging to the family Combretaceae is frequently used as traditional medicine by tribal folk to get remedies from several ailments. In this study, the antimicrobial potential of different extracts of leaf and stem of T. bellerica collected from two different sites was investigated against five Gram positive, five Gram negative and four fungi. The extraction was done by cold percolation method. The dry powder was first defatted by hexane and then extracted in acetone. The acetone extract was fractionated into two fractions by solvent-solvent partition method. The antimicrobial activity was done by disc diffusion assay. The MIC and MBC was also evaluated. The T. bellerica extracts showed more antibacterial activity than antifungal activity and antibacterial activity was more towards Gram negative bacteria than Gram positive bacteria. The extracts are especially good against Gram positive bacteria like Corynebacterium rubrum and Staphylococcus epidermidis and Gram negative bacteria like Klebsiella pneumonie, Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. T. bellerica extracts can be used as effective antibacterial agents in the search for new drugs.

Author(s): Sumitra Chanda, Disha Menpara and Dishant Desai

Abstract | PDF

Share This Article