EFFECT OF DIFFERENT EXTRACTS OF STEM BARK OF FICUS SP. ON MULTIDRUG RESISTANT PATHOGENIC BACTERIA

Medicinal plants represent a rich source of antimicrobial agents. The traditional medicine involves the use of different plant extracts of bioactive constituents. Ficus is a huge tropical deciduous or evergreen tree with more than 800 species.

Purpose:  Ficus benghalensis, Ficus religiosa, Ficus recemosa are important ingredients in many siddha, ayurveda and traditional formulations and used for the treatment of bacterial infections. An attempt was made to study the antibacterial effect of Ficus sp., by appropriate methods.

Method: The acetone, methanol, ethylacetate extracts of Ficus benghalensis, Ficus religiosa, Ficus recemosa were evaluated for antibacterial activity against medically important bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Proteus vulgaris, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus. Phyto constituents of three plants were screened. The in-vitro antibacterial activity was performed by agar disc diffusion assay.

Results: The plant extract that showed higher active antibacterial activity against tested   bacterial strain was chosen analyse beta-lactamase inhibitory activity. Ficus sp. Showed more antibacterial activity on Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Proteus vulgaris.

Conclusion: Amongst the plant species screened, Ficus benghalensis extracts showed best antibacterial activity. These findings suggest a new pathway in elucidating a potent antimicrobial agent from Ficus benghalensis.