ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF DIFFERENT SOLVENT EXTRACTS OF SELECTED SOUTH INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS AGAINST SELECTED BACTERIAL PATHOGENS

Bacterial pathogens have evolved numerous defense mechanisms against antimicrobial agents; hence resistance tool and newly produced drugs is on the rise. The phenomenon of antibiotic resistance exhibited by the pathogenic microorganisms has led to the need for screening of several medicinal plants for their potential antimicrobial activity. Thus the present study was undertaken to investigate the antibacterial activity of 3 medicinal plants against E.coli, P.aeruginosa, S.aureus, S.pneumonia The antibacterial activity of methanol, Extract of Mirabilis jalapa L., Acalypha lanceolata Wild and Curculigo orchioides Gaertn. (leaves was used), by Disc diffusion and Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) method. Our studies concluded that crude extracts of the selected plants especially the methanol extracts exhibited significant activity against bacterial pathogens. It can be concluded that these plants can be used to discover natural products that may serve as lead for the development of new pharmaceuticals addressing the major therapeutic needs to help new researchers and Pharmacologist for future studies.

Key words: bacterial pathogens Medicinal plants, Antibacterial activity, Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) method.