Antimicrobial activity of some medicinal barks used in Peruvian Amazon

J Ethnopharmacol. 2007 May 4;111(2):427-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2006.11.010. Epub 2006 Nov 18.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of six barks traditionally used in Callería District (Ucayali Department, Peru) for treating conditions likely to be associated with microorganisms. Ethanol extracts of stem barks of Abuta grandifolia (Menispermaceae), Dipteryx micrantha (Leguminosae), Cordia alliodora (Boraginaceae), Naucleopsis glabra (Moraceae), Pterocarpus rohrii (Leguminosae), and root bark of Maytenus macrocarpa (Celastraceae) were tested against nine bacteria and one yeast using the broth microdilution method. All plants possessed significant antimicrobial effect, however, the extract of Naucleopsis glabra exhibited the strongest activity against Gram-positive bacteria (MICs ranging from 62.5 to 125 microg/ml), while the broadest spectrum of action was shown by the extract of Maytenus macrocarpa, which inhibited all the strains tested with MICs ranging from 125 to 250 microg/ml.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Evaluation Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology*
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Drug Evaluation, Preclinical
  • Geography
  • Gram-Positive Bacteria / drug effects*
  • Humans
  • Medicine, Traditional
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Peru
  • Phytotherapy*
  • Plant Bark / chemistry*
  • Plant Roots / chemistry
  • Plants, Medicinal / chemistry*
  • Plants, Medicinal / classification

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents