Phyto-Therapeutic Potential of Medicinal Plant Extracts against MDR Pathogens and Their Cytotoxicity

Plant extracts can be great substitutes to the infections instigated by multidrug-resistant (MDR) microbes due to the presence of naturally occurring phytochemical compounds enclosed within them. In this study the antimicrobial potential of eight different medicinal plants was tested against Escherichia coli (BTCB02), Staphylococcus aureus (BTCB03), and Bacillus subtilis (BTCB12) using disc diffusion method. Additionally, the cytotoxic activity via MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) assay against MDA-MD-231(MD Anderson) breast cancer cell lines was also conducted to examine their toxicity. Three crude extracts—aqueous, methanol, and ethanol—were prepared through maceration extraction. Amongst all the medicinal plants, Anogeissus latifolia disclosed the highest antimicrobial activity against E. coli, i.e., 28 ± 0.58 mm, whereas Viola odorata displayed 17 ± 0.78 mm, while aqueous Nardostachys jatamansi ethanol extracts revealed 14 ± 0.87 mm. Furthermore, B. subtilis revealed the highest antimicrobial activity with Aristolochia rotunda (methanol) (32 ± 1.23 mm), and Anogeissus latifolia exposed 22 ± 0.57 mm (ethanol) together with Rheum webbianum (ethanol) at 21 ± 0.23 mm. Moreover, S. aureus showed highest antimicrobial activity with Aristolochia rotunda aqueous extract (35 ± 1.02 mm) followed by Pistacia chinensis (32 ± 1.02 mm) and Anogeissus latifolia methanol extracts (23 ± 0.57 mm). After conducting series of experiments, plant samples Viola odorata (aqueous extract) and Acacia nilotica (ethanol extract) possessed highest cytotoxic activity against MDA-MD-231 cell line from 1 to 6% respectively. The results also verified the significance of phytochemicals in plants that are known to play a vital role during antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities.