Abstract

ASSESSMENT OF ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF PAVONIA ZEYLONICA ROOT EXTRACTS

M. Kalaivani and S. Vinodhini*

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Abstract

In the current environment, increasing resistance to existing antibacterial agents and herbal drugs is being investigated as important sources for new agents for testing various diseases related to bacterial infections. The present study was subjected to evaluating the antibacterial activity of petroleum ether, ethanol, and aqueous root extract of the medicinal plant Pavonia zeylonica L. using the standard disc diffusion method. Susceptibility of some Gram-positive organisms (Staphylococcus pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, and Enterococcus faecium) and Gram-negative organisms (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) was tested against various root extracts. The antibacterial activity results of the present study showed a variety of extracts; ethanol root extract was more effective, and aqueous root extract was found to be less effective against all the bacteria. It is concluded that the plant extract showed antimicrobial activity in the presence of these phytochemicals. Additional research is recommended for drug development to treat various infectious disorders.

Keywords: Pavonia zeylonica, Malvaceae, Antibacterial activity, Root extracts.