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Antimicrobial activity of some Australian plant species from the genus Eremophila
Author(s) -
Ndi Chi P.,
Semple Susan J.,
Griesser Hans J.,
Barton Mary D.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of basic microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.58
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1521-4028
pISSN - 0233-111X
DOI - 10.1002/jobm.200610262
Subject(s) - biology , antimicrobial , antibacterial activity , traditional medicine , botany , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteria , medicine , genetics
Plant species of the genus Eremophila (Myoporaceae) are native to Australia and are known to produce a diverse range of unusual secondary compounds. The purpose of this research was to examine the antimicrobial activity of 72 Eremophila species most of which had not been the subject of any previous pharmacological testing. Organic extracts of Eremophila species were screened for antimicrobial activity against Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacteria and yeasts of medical importance. Extracts of a number of Eremophila species showed selective activity against Gram‐positive bacteria with MICs for the most active species in the range of 16 to 62 μg/ml for Streptococcus species, and 62 to 250 μg/ml for standard strains of Staphylococcus aureus . Extracts with the greatest activity against standard strains were tested against 68 clinical isolates of multi‐resistant methicillin‐resistant S. aureus (mMRSA). The majority of the clinical isolates were susceptible to concentrations below 62.5 μg/ml for the extracts of E. drummondii , E. linearis , E. serrulata , E. acrida , E. neglecta, E. virens and a new undescribed species affiliated with E. prolata . The extract of E. virens inhibited growth of all 68 clinical mMRSA isolates at the minimum tested concentration of 31 μg/ml. This study has shown for the first time that a number of different Eremophila species manifest selective antibacterial activity against Gram‐positive organisms which are important causes of human disease. It shows that there are several Eremophila species possessing interesting antibacterial activity besides those that have published traditional use. These may yield novel antibacterial compounds with potential to be used in biomedical applications. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)