Evaluation of antibacterial, antimicrobial, and hypoglycemic effects of the leaves of embelia ribes

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this work is to evaluate the antimicrobial, antibacterial, and hypoglycemic effects of methanolic and ethanolic extracts of Embelia ribes leaves using in vitro studies. Methods: Antibacterial activities of the methanolic and ethanolic extract of E. ribes leaves against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococci, and Klebsiella pneumoniae at different concentrations ranging from 10, 25, 50, and 75 μg/mL and their antibacterial activities were compared to those of the reference controls such as ciprofloxacin and clindamycin. Furthermore, the effect of leaf extracts on α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzymes was assayed. Results: The methanolic and ethanolic extract of E. ribes leaves effectively inhibited the activity of α-amylase and α-glucosidase in a dose-dependent manner. The effect of the methanolic extract was more prominent than that of ethanolic extract. At the same time, both the extracts showed markable inhibition of bacterial growth at a concentration of 75 μg/mL compared to the other three doses (10, 25, and 50 μg/ml) and also commercially available antibiotic drugs ciprofloxacin and clindamycin that were used as positive control drugs. The antibacterial activity of methanolic extract is significantly higher than that of ethanolic extract. Conclusion: The preliminary results of this study have put forward E. ribes into promising herb with respect to its therapeutic potential although further studies are needed to evaluate its mechanism of action.