Antifouling potential of Thalassia hemprichii extract against growth of biofilm-forming bacteria

Abstract

Many types of seagrass are known to produce active compounds, including those with the ability to function as antimicrobials. This study focused on the potential of crude methanol extract from the seagrass Thalassia hemprichii as an antimicrofouling agent. Seagrass T. hemprichii was macerated and then extracted with methanol. To identify active components, biofilm bacterial inhibition assays were performed using the diffusion method. Isolates of biofilm-forming bacteria were characterized and placed into eight groups. Bacterial inhibition assays demonstrated that T. hemprichii extract was able to inhibit the growth of biofilm-forming bacteria, producing a 26 mm inhibition zone. The effects of T. hemprichii extract was similar to chloramphenicol, which formed a 28 mm inhibition zone. No inhibition zone was observed using methanol, the extraction solvent. The growth inhibitory properties of T. hemprichii extract were further examined for each bacterial isolate. Inhibition zones produced by T. hemprichii extract using several bacterial isolates were similar to chloramphenicol (27 mm): P1, 26 mm; P3, 27 mm; P4, 24 mm; P7, 26 mm; and P8, 26 mm. In contrast, T. hemprichii extract was less effective at inhibiting the growth of other bacterial isolates: P2, 21 mm; P5, 14 mm; and P6, 9 mm. Overall, our analysis demonstrates that T. hemprichii extract can inhibit the growth of biofilm-forming bacteria, proving its potential as an antimicrofouling agent.