Antibacterial activity of leaf extracts of some selected traditional medicinal plants of Uttarakhand, North East India

Abstract

Screenings of methanolic leaf extracts of nine medicinal plants (Cotinus coggygria, Adhatoda vesica, Argemone mexicana, Zanthoxylum armatum, Berberis asiatica, Corissa opaca, Euphorbia hirta, Cassio fistula and Ricinus communis), belonging to selected areas of Uttarakhand, were tested against seven bacterial strains (Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Enterobactor aerogenes, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus vulgaris and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) by disc diffusion method. Leaf extracts of R. communis, B. asiatica and C. opaca showed high (13 – 23) effect on all the bacterial strains while E. hirta, Z. armatum and A. vesica exhibits minimum (6 – 15) effects. Remaining leaf extracts of plants were found moderately (10 - 19) effective.