In vitro antimicrobial activity of Barleria cuspidata F. Heyne ex Nees. leaf extract against dental caries causing microorganisms Devi E. Gaayathiri*, Nisha M.K. Department of Botany, Avinashilingam Institute for Home Science and Higher Education for Women, Coimbatore-43, Tamil Nadu, India *Corresponding author e-mail: ekgaayathiri@gmail.com
Online Published on 30 November, 2022. Abstract The Urali tribes of Thottakombai hill, near Anthiyur in Erode district, Tamilnadu, India, were contacted and investigated who used the leaves of Barleria cuspidata F. Heyne ex Nees. to cure dental cavities along with a consortium of medicinal plants. Thus, the work was carried out to assess the antimicrobial potential of the B. cuspidata methanolic leaf extract against selected oral pathogens, Citrobacter tructae, Streptococcus mutans, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans, Lactobacillus acidophilus and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It showed a significant inhibitory effect on all the bacterial isolates except the probiotics L. acidophilus and S. cerevisiae and exhibited an inhibition for the pathogenic bacteria C. albicans only at higher concentrations. The highest zone of inhibition was found in C. tructae with a 30mm diameter. MIC values ranged from 0.2 to 71.8% of inhibitory activity while the MBC of plant extract exhibited superior inhibition in treated than controlled plates. The plant extract eradicated the biofilm formation of each bacterium from 2 to 20 μg/ml of concentration. Top Keywords Barleria cuspidata, Thottakombai hill, Dental cavities, Methanolic extract, Antimicrobial. Top |