Antimicrobial Activity of Sphaeranthus indicus L.

Aerial parts and flowers of Sphaeranthus indicus were extracted with n-hexane, benzene, chloroform, ehtylacetate and acetone. The extracts were screened for their antimicrobial activity using in vitro disc diffusion method at concentrations of 5, 2.5 and 1.25 mg/disc. The Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) was tested using broth micro dilution method at concentrations ranging from 5 to 0.039 mg/ml. Significant antibacterial and antifungal activity was observed in hexane extract of flower and aerial parts. The flower extract showed MIC as 0.15 mg/ml against Staphylococcus aureus and the highest MIC (5 mg/ml) was noted for S. epidermidis. The n-hexane extracts of flower and aerial parts showed MIC as 0.15 and 1.25 mg/ml respectively against Candida albicans. In conclusion, the S. indicus flower n-hexane extract seems to be a promising antimicrobial agent

Traditional Healing Potential of Paliyars in Southern India

India is one of the twelve mega-biodiversity countries of the world having rich vegetation with a wide variety of medicinal plants and a tradition of plant-based knowledge distributed amongst a vast number of ethnic groups. The present study focuses mainly on the traditional knowledge of the Paliyar tribals for primary healthcare needs as reported by their informants/traditional healers. The study shows a high degree of ethnobotanical novelty and the use of plants among the Paliyars reflects the revival of interest in traditional folk culture and ethnomedicine

Traditional Herbal Medicines Used for the Treatment of Diabetes among Two Major Tribal Groups in South Tamil Nadu, India

Medicinal plants used to treat diabetic conditions are of considerable interest and a number of plants have shown varying degrees of hypoglycaemic and antihyperglycaemic activity. An ethno-medico-botanical survey was carried out among the Kani and Paliyar tribals in southern Western Ghats of Tamil Nadu for the exploration of antidiabetic herbal medicines. They frequently use ten species of plants for the treatment of diabetes either in single or in combination with some other plant parts. The wealth of tribal knowledge on medicinal plants points to a great potential for research and the discovery of new drugs to fight diseases including diabetes, obtaining new foods and other new uses

Antimicrobial, antimycobacterial and antibiofilm properties of Couroupita guianensis Aubl. fruit extract

BACKGROUND: Couroupita guianensis Aubl. (Lecythidaceae) is commonly called Ayahuma and the Cannonball tree. It is distributed in the tropical regions of northern South America and Southern Caribbean. It has several medicinal properties. It is used to treat hypertension, tumours, pain, inflammatory processes, cold, stomach ache, skin diseases, malaria, wounds and toothache. METHODS: The fruits of Couroupita guianensis were extracted with chloroform. Antimicrobial, antimycobacterial and antibiofilm forming activities of the chloroform extract were investigated. Quantitative estimation of Indirubin, one of the major constituent, was identified by HPLC. RESULTS: Chloroform extract showed good antimicrobial and antibiofilm forming activities; however it showed low antimycobacterial activity. The zones of inhibition by chloroform extract ranged from 0 to 26 mm. Chloroform extract showed effective antibiofilm activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa starting from 2 mg/mL BIC, with 52% inhibition of biofilm formation. When the chloroform extract was subjected to HPLC-DAD analysis, along with Indirubin standard, in the same chromatographic conditions, it was found that Indirubin was one of the major compounds in this plant (0.0918% dry weight basis). CONCLUSIONS: The chloroform extract showed good antimicrobial and antibiofilm properties. Chloroform extract can be evaluated further in drug development programmes

Odour-mediated orientation of beetles is influenced by age, sex and morph

The behaviour of insects is dictated by a combination of factors and may vary considerably between individuals, but small insects are often considered en masse and thus these differences can be overlooked. For example, the cowpea bruchid Callosobruchus maculatus F. exists naturally in two adult forms: the active (flight) form for dispersal, and the inactive (flightless), more fecund but shorter-lived form. Given that these morphs show dissimilar biology, it is possible that they differ in odour-mediated orientation and yet studies of this species frequently neglect to distinguish morph type, or are carried out only on the inactive morph. Along with sex and age of individual, adult morph could be an important variable determining the biology of this and similar species, informing studies on evolution, ecology and pest management. We used an olfactometer with motion-tracking to investigate whether the olfactory behaviour and orientation of C. maculatus towards infested and uninfested cowpeas and a plant-derived repellent compound, methyl salicylate, differed between morphs or sexes. We found significant differences between the behaviour of male and female beetles and beetles of different ages, as well as interactive effects of sex, morph and age, in response to both host and repellent odours. This study demonstrates that behavioural experiments on insects should control for sex and age, while also considering differences between adult morphs where present in insect species. This finding has broad implications for fundamental entomological research, particularly when exploring the relationships between physiology, behaviour and evolutionary biology, and the application of crop protection strategies

Antimicrobial activity of some ethnomedicinal plants used by Paliyar tribe from Tamil Nadu, India

BACKGROUND: Antimicrobial activity of 18 ethnomedicinal plant extracts were evaluated against nine bacterial strains (Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Ervinia sp, Proteus vulgaris) and one fungal strain (Candida albicans). The collected ethnomedicinal plants were used in folk medicine in the treatment of skin diseases, venereal diseases, respiratory problems and nervous disorders. METHODS: Plants were collected from Palni hills of Southern Western Ghats and the ethnobotanical data were gathered from traditional healers who inhabit the study area. The hexane and methanol extracts were obtained by cold percolation method and the antimicrobial activity was found using paper disc diffusion method. All microorganisms were obtained from Christian Medical College, Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India. RESULTS: The results indicated that out of 18 plants, 10 plants exhibited antimicrobial activity against one or more of the tested microorganisms at three different concentrations of 1.25, 2.5 and 5 mg/disc. Among the plants tested, Acalypha fruticosa, Peltophorum pterocarpum, Toddalia asiatica,Cassia auriculata, Punica granatum and Syzygium lineare were most active. The highest antifungal activity was exhibited by methanol extract of Peltophorum pterocarpum and Punica granatum against Candida albicans. CONCLUSION: This study evaluated the antimicrobial activity of the some ethnomedicinal plants used in folkloric medicine. Compared to hexane extract, methanol extract showed significant activity against tested organisms. This study also showed that Toddalia asiatica, Syzygium lineare, Acalypha fruticosa and Peltophorum pterocarpum could be potential sources of new antimicrobial agents

Antifungal activity of triterpenoid isolated from Azima tetracantha leaves.

The present study was designed to evaluate the antifungal activity of Azima tetracantha extracts and isolated compound (friedelin) against fungi. Antifungal activity was carried out using broth microdilution method and fractions were collected using (silica gel) column chromatography. The antifungal activity of Azima tetracantha crude extracts and isolated compound (friedelin) were evaluated using the micro dilution method. Hexane extract showed some antifungal activity. The compound also exhibited antifungal activity against tested fungi. The lowest MIC against Trichophyton rubrum (296) was 62.5 microg/ml and the MIC for Curvularia lunata was 62.5 microg/ml. These results suggest that Friedelin is a promising antifungal agent

Ethnobotanical investigations among tribes in Madurai District of Tamil Nadu (India)

BACKGROUND: An ethnobotanical survey was carried out to collect information on the use of medicinal plants in Southern Western Ghats of India (Madurai district, Tamil Nadu). Information presented in this paper was gathered from the paliyar tribes using an integrated approach of botanical collections, group discussions and interviews with questionnaires in the years 1998 – 1999. The informants interviewed were 12 among whom 4 were tribal practitioners. RESULTS: A total of 60 ethnomedicinal plant species distributed in 32 families are documented in this study. The medicinal plants used by paliyars are listed with Latin name, family, local name, parts used, mode of preparation and medicinal uses. Generally, fresh part of the plant was used for the preparation of medicine. CONCLUSION: We observed that the documented ethnomedicinal plants were mostly used to cure skin diseases, poison bites, stomachache and nervous disorders. The results of this study showed that these tribal people still depend on medicinal plants in Madurai district forest areas

Preliminary screening of plant essential oils against larvae of Culex quinquefasciatus Say (Diptera: Culicidae)

Preliminary screenings of 22 plant essential oils were tested for mortality of the mosquito larvae Culex quinquefasciatus under laboratory conditions. Percent (%) mortality of the mosquito larvae were obtained for each essential oil. At different exposure periods, viz. 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h among the 22 plant oils tested, eight oils viz., aniseed, calamus, cinnamon, clove, lemon, orange, thyme, and tulsi oils gave promising results on larvicidal activity. For larvicidal screening bioassay, the mortality was recorded at different exposure periods viz., 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h, and it was found that larval mortality increased when exposure time increased. The clove oil was found to be the most effective treatment. In the preliminary screening, clove oil gave 100% mortality at all exposure periods. Vetiver oil recorded 36.2, 61.2, 76.2, 87.5 and 100% mortality in 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h, respectively. Results of this study show that the essential oils may be a potent source of natural larvicides.Key words: Screening, essential oils, Culex quinquefasciatus, Larvicidal

Medicinal plants used by traditional healers in Kancheepuram District of Tamil Nadu, India

An ethnobotanical survey was undertaken to collect information from traditional healers on the use of medicinal plants in Kancheepuram district of Tamil Nadu during October 2003 to April 2004. The indigenous knowledge of local traditional healers and the native plants used for medicinal purposes were collected through questionnaire and personal interviews during field trips. The investigation revealed that, the traditional healers used 85 species of plants distributed in 76 genera belonging to 41 families to treat various diseases. The documented medicinal plants were mostly used to cure skin diseases, poison bites, stomachache and nervous disorders. In this study the most dominant family was Euphorbiaceae and leaves were most frequently used for the treatment of diseases. This study showed that many people in the studied parts of Kancheepuram district still continue to depend on medicinal plants at least for the treatment of primary healthcare. The traditional healers are dwindling in number and there is a grave danger of traditional knowledge disappearing soon since the younger generation is not interested to carry on this tradition