Comparative Study of Antimicrobial Activity of Betel leaf Extract and Antibiotics against Selected Bacterial Pathogens

Abstract

The antibacterial activity of Betel leaf was studied to screen their ability to inhibit the growth of bacterial pathogens i.e. E. coli, B. cereus, P. aeruginosa and S. typhi. The organisms were subjected to antibiotic sensitivity towards, Ampicillin, Chloramphenicol, Penicillin, Rifampicin, Gentamycin, Tetracycline, Ciprofloxacin, Norfloxacin, Kanamycin, Azithromycin, Ceftazidine, Amikacin, Ofloxacin, Vancomycin and Teicoplanin. S.typhi was the most susceptible organism towards all the tested antibiotics. E. coli, B. cereus and P. aeruginosa were multidrug resistant organisms. The organisms were tested for susceptibility against the Betel leaf using agar well extract diffusion method Methanolic extract of Betel Leaf was found most potent and effective against all the test organisms. Methanol extract of Betel leaf was then subjected to MIC and MBC value determination which showed lowest MIC and MBC value of Betel leaf for S. typhi at 0.1µl/ml and 0.2µl/ml and highest for P. aeruginosa at 12.8 µl/ml and 6.4 µl/ml respectively. The study proves that the methanol extract of betel leaf can be employed effectively to treat the hospital and community acquired infections caused by E. coli, B. cereus, P. aeruginosa, and S. typhi