Journal of Medicinal Plants
Year:2007 | Volume:6 | Issue:SUPPLEMENT 1|Papers Count:11

Background: Medicinal plants have been traditionally used for different kinds of ailments including infectious diseases. There is an increasing need for substances with antiviral activity since the treatment of viral infections with the available antiviral drugs often leads to the problem of viral resistance. There is a need to search for new and more effective antiviral agents.Objective: therefore in the present study 20 plants with ethno-medical background from different families were screened for antiviral activity against HSV-1, Adenovirus type 5, Echovirus type 11, Measles virus and Rotavirus.Methods: Different parts of the plants collected from Iran were extracted with aqueous solvents to obtain crude extracts. These extracts were screened for their cytotoxicity against Vero, BSC-1, Hep-II and RD cell lines by assays micro-culture neutral red dye absorption and microscopically follow up for CPE. Antiviral properties of the plant extracts were determined by cytopathic effect inhibition assay and plaque reduction assay.Results: Three plants extract; Aristolochia maurorum, Terminalia chebula Retz. and Cichorium intybus L. exhibited significant antiviral activity against HSV-1 and adenovirus type 5 at a concentration non toxic to the cell lines used. The extracts of Aristolochia maurorum and Cichorium intybus L. showed great anti viral activity against HSV-1 and partial activity against adenovirus at higher concentrations.Conclusion: Some of the medicinal plants have shown antiviral activity. Further research is needed to elucidate the active constituents of these plants which may be useful in the development of new and effective antiviral agents.

Background: The pathogen of the positive gram Staphylococcus aureus and the negative gram Pseudomonas aeroginosa are the most important infectious factors for human. Since the bacterial resistance to the chemical medicines has increased and the plant medicines are of less side effects, nowadays the medical plants have been the focus of attention. Objective: In this research, the Staphyloccus aureus and pseudomonas aeroginosa have been isolated. The pathogen of staphylococcus positive gram bacterium and pseudomonas aeroginosa negative gram after being isolated, they were incubated in a special condition. Results: An extract obtained from a native plant called Scropholaria striata. Then some incubation conditions were prepared *from 15 to 4 mac suspensions of these bacteria. To determine the sensitivity, two micro well were made in each incubation condition. In one of the micro well the plant extract and in the other one the positive control 2 i.e. Amikacin and vancomycin were poured, of course with the different densities. After measuring the circle made out of it, the results were studied. They showed that the average of the circle diameters made by scropholoria striate was more than that made by chemical medicines with positive control (p<0.05). Increasing the density of the extract from 50 microlitre to 90 microlitre, the average of the circle diameters increased (p<0.05).The achieved results showed that more number of the bactera in each incubation condition, the less the diameter of staphylococcus aureus circle (p<0.05), but for a genus of pseudomonas the result was not the same.Conclusion: The final results of the research showed that the plant extract of Scropholaria striata can be used as an alternative remedy of the infections coused by these two microorganisms.

Background: This study was conducted to examine the effectiveness of some plant essential oils for control of growth and survival of S. aureus in pasteurized cheese.Methods: Essential oils from Thyme (Thymus vulgaris), Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus), caraway seed (Carum carvi), Penney royal (Mentha pulgium) and Peppermint (Mentha piperita) were extracted by Steam Distillation Method.Two concentration close to the level of MIC for each essential oils (Thyme 0.1 and 0.2%, and the others 0.3 and 0.4%) were induced in samples and 10 6 CFU/g bacteria (S. aureus) was inoculated into the samples and controls.All the samples and controls were kept at 12oC (The optimum temperature for ripening of cheese) for 168 h. Samples and controls were checked for the number of inoculated bacteria on 0, 24, 48, 72 and 168 h.Results: The results of this study showed that the essential oils of these plants have antimicrobial activity on S. aureus, essential oils of the Thyme showed the most and for Tarragon the least antimicrobial activity on tested bacterium.The Thyme oils caused 2 and 4 Log reductions of S. aureus to control at 0.1 and 0.2 % in cheese after 168 h. The essential oils of the Caraway seed, Penney royal and Peppermint had moderate effect on S. aureus and caused 1.5 and 2 Log reduction in the number of bacteria in the samples to controls.The Tarragon oils caused 0.8 and 1.2 Log reduction to control at 0.3 and 0.4% after 168 h.Conclusion: From the results of this study it is concluded that essential oils of some plants may use as a natural preservative in some foods.

Background: Fusarium from Tuberculariacea family is listed as one capable of causing mycetomas in human, animals and plants.Objective: In this investigation, antifungal activity of water, metanolic and phenolic extracta of seeds and leaves of sorghum bicolor were studied on Fusarium poae and F. solani. Methods: Primarily, the crude water extracts at 7 concentrations of 0-50mg/l were tested. Results: The concentrations of 10 and 40 mg/l, showed inhibitor effects on F. poae. The methanol extracts at different concentrations were tested. 20, 30and 40 mg/l (Specially  30 mg/l) of metanolic extract showed antifungal activity agianst F. poae. The phenolic compouns (0 - 25mg/l) showed high antifungal activity on F. solani and F. poae.

The essential oil of Peucedanum ruthenicum leaf obtained by hydro distillation and was analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Among the 17 identified constituents accounting for 100% of the total oil, the major component was Thymol (57.79%). Antimicrobial activity of the essential oil was investigated against various Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The essential oil of P. ruthenicum showed activity against Gram-positive and Gram negative bacteria.

Background: Allium jesdianum Boiss. belongs to Liliaceae family, which grows widly in west and northwest of Iran and has nutritive and medicine uses in the regions.Objective: Identification of chemical composition and antibacterial activity of the essential oil and different extracts of Allium jesdianum.Methods: The aerial parts were collected in flowering stage. The essentail oil from aerial parts, which was obtained by Hydrodistillation, was subjected to GC and GC/MS. The antibacterial effects of essential oil and aqueous, methanolic and ethanolic extracts of Allium jesdianum were studied by digging hole and measuring diameter of grows inhibiting ring and Gentamicine antibiotic was used for comparison.Results: The yield of essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation from dried plant material was 0.1% w/w. The major components were found to be: Trisulfide dimethyl (22.34%), Hexadecanoic acid (19.03%), Phytol (12.82%), Disulfide methyl-1-(methylthio) ethyl (9.25%), Pentacosane (8.03%), Curzerene (7.62%). The study of antibacterial activity showed that the ethanolic extracts have stronger antibacterial effects compared with essential oil and other extracts.Discussion: In conclusion, the data reported in our study showed that the sulfide compounds represented the most abundant compounds as the other Allium species. The antibacterial activity of oil and extracts of A. jesdianum can be attributed of sulfide and terpenoides compounds.

Background: There is an increasing report of bacterial resistance to antibiotics in the world. Also side effects of chemical food preservatives suspected to be carcinogenic have drawn attention towards application of herbal medicine and natural substitutions. In this study, antibacterial activities of essential oils from four medicinal plants and chemical compositions of essential oils from Thymus (T.) eriocalyx and T. persicus of Lorestan were examined.Materials and Methods: Flowers and leaves from T. persicus, T. eriocalyx, Crocus sativus and Gundelia tolurntortel L. were collected freshly. Essential oils were prepared in Clevenger apparatus and analyzed by GC/MS. Antibacterial activities were examined by disk diffusion and broth microdillution technique, using standard (ATCC) gram positive and negative bacteria and standard (Muller Hinton agar and broth or Isosensitest agar) media in order to determine Minimum Inhibitory (MIC) or Bactericidal (MBC) concentration.Results: Twenty seven compounds in essential oils from T. Eriocalyx and fifteen in T. persicus were identified. The major compounds were Thymol and Crvacrol; which constitute %66 and % 7.5 respectively in essential oils from T. erocalyx and %10 and %25 in T. persicus. Strong antibacterial activities were observed against both gram positive and negative bacteria including S. aureous and P. aeroginosa by T. eriocalyx and T. persicus. Essential oils from T. persicus produced MIC =MBC= 10 mg/ml against P. aeroginosa which is significant. Essential oils of leaves from Gundela tourntorel and Crocus sativus showed antibacterial activities against some gram positive bacteria. Conclusion: Significant antibacterial activities were observed in species examined from Thymus essential oils. Given the fact that T. eriocalyx is rich in thymol but low in carvacrol, application of this oils in medicine and food preservatives would avoid inflammatory effect of carvacrol and provide good prospects for further application of this popular plant.

Background: In recent years, systemic fungal infections due to Candida species have been received major consideration about inducing mortality in nosocomial patient's because of increasing in immunocompromised disorders such as AIDS and hematological disorders as well as long term use of broad spectrum antibiotics and corticosteroids.Wide range use of antifungal agents specially azole compounds in treatment of sever Candidiasis has resulted in fungal resistance in Candida species, there fore, it is necessary to use antifungal susceptibility tests before selecting a suitable drug for such above mentioned infections which can resulted in the decrease in secondary drug resistance and better manipulation of treatment protocols.Objective: The present study was done with the aim of evaluating antifungal effects of a aqueous and essential oils prepared from Thymus vulgaris and Origanum vulgare against fluconazole (FLZ) susceptible and Fluconazole resistance Candida albicans strains isolated from different types of Candida using standard drug susceptibility tests. Methods: Evaluation of FLZ susceptibility of C. albicans strains by disk diffusion method showed 26 (78 %), 4 (12.1%) and 3 (9.9%) isolates were susceptible, dose – dependence and resistant, respectively.Aqueous and essential oils from both Thymums vulgaris and Origanum vulgare showed inhibitory effects on growth of FLZ-susceptible C. albicans isolates, where as, only essential oils from Thymus vulgaris were found to be able to inhibit growth of FLZ-resistant C. albicans isolates.Resultrs: These resultrs show that there is a direct relationship between FLZ resistance and resistance to both thymus and Origanum in C.albicans.Thus, it is seems that these two plants could inbibit C. albicans growth by a similar mechanism which occure by FLZ.Conclusion: In general, the results obtained in this study indicate that both thymus vulgaris and Origanim vulgare have potential values for growth inhibition of C. albicans in vitro.