Vitex negundo (lagundi, VNE), Peperomia pellucida (ulasimang bato, PPE), Alium sativum (bawang, ASA), Psidium guajava (bayabas, PGU), Mentha cordifolia Opiz (yerba buena, MCO), Blumea balsamifera (sambong, BBA), Momordica charantia (ampalaya, MCH), Quisqualis indica L. (QIN, niyog-niyogan), Carmona retusa (tsaang gubat, CRE), and Cassia alata (akapulko, CAL) have been approved by the Department of Health through Republic Act No. 8423, known as the Traditional and Alternative Medicine Act of 1997, which is aimed toward developing traditional and alternative medicines in the Philippines. In this study, we assessed the antimicrobial activity of the methanol extracts alone and in combination against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. At least 50% growth inhibition was observed for MCH and MCO against B. subtilis at 1.25 mg/mL, for MCO against S. aureus and P. aeruginosa at 0.63 mg/mL, and CAL against E. coli at 0.16 mg/mL. In the resazurin assay, MCO showed bactericidal activity against S. aureus. CAL, MCH, and MCO, when combined, are generally non-interactive against B. subtilis, S. aureus, and P. aeruginosa. However, amplification of the antimicrobial activity of MCH was observed after combining with CAL or with MCO. For the CAL and MCO combination, CAL activity was increased in the presence of MCO against all organisms tested. In conclusion, MCO, MCH, and CAL have the highest antimicrobial activity among the rest of the medicinal plants. Combining these plants exhibited no synergism. This study provides insights into the potential use of these plant extracts as antimicrobials.
Ramos et al. (Sun,) studied this question.
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