Antimicrobial Effect of Essential Oils of Some Fijian Medicinal Plant Leaves On Pathogenic Bacteria

Maharaj, Prayna and Devi, Riteshma and Prasad, Surendra (2016) Antimicrobial Effect of Essential Oils of Some Fijian Medicinal Plant Leaves On Pathogenic Bacteria. The South Pacific Journal of Natural and Applied Sciences, 34 (2). pp. 35-39. ISSN 1838-837X

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Abstract

Fiji is highly populated with plants containing essential oils (EO). The essential oils extracted from the leaves of the selected Fijian leafy plants were screened against two Gram-negative bacteria (Salmonella typhimurium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and three Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis and Bacillus subtilis). The agar diffusion method was used to examine the antimicrobial activities of the extracted EO. All the EO tested showed antibacterial properties against one or more strains while none of the EO was active against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Viburnum lantana (Wayfaring tree), Annona muricata (Soursop), Coleus amboinicus (Spanish thyme) and Cinnamomum zeylancium (Cinnamon) showed good inhibition against both Gram- positive and Gram-negative bacteria and proved as worthy source of antimicrobial agent. These findings will help the Pacific population to use the studied plants leaves as antimicrobial agent.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Essential oils; Fiji medicinal plants; Leafy plants; Antimicrobial activity
Subjects:	Q Science > QD Chemistry
Divisions:	Faculty of Science, Technology and Environment (FSTE) > School of Biological and Chemical Sciences
Depositing User:	Repo Editor
Date Deposited:	26 Apr 2017 01:32
Last Modified:	26 Apr 2017 01:32
URI:	https://repository.usp.ac.fj/id/eprint/9788

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