Study on antimicrobial antioxidant property and mycorrhizal diversity of some ethnomedicinal plants of district Shimla Himachal Pradesh in Western Himalaya

Abstract

newline x newlineAbstract newlineIndian Himalayan Region is a mega biodiversity hotspot and Himachal Pradesh is newlinesituated in the lap of western Himalayan region. In present research work, survey of newlineethnomedicinal plants was conducted in the district Shimla of Himachal Pradesh, India. newlineThirty five ethnomedicinal plants were collected, identified, documented and preserved newlinein the form of herbarium. Among the collected plants, seven important ethnomedicinal newlineplant species viz., Trillium govanianum Wall. ex D. Don, Bergenia ciliata newline(Haw.) Sternb., Leucas lanata Wall ex Benth., Rumex obtusifolius L., Adhatoda vasica newlineNees, Perilla frutescens (L.) Britton and Acorus calamus L were analyzed for their newlineantimicrobial activity, antioxidant potential, presence of important phytochemicals and newlineassociated mycorrhizal diversity. All the selected plant species possess antimicrobial newlineproperty against standard and clinical isolates of bacterial cultures viz., E. coli, K. newlinepneumoniae, S. typhimurium, S. aureus and P. aeruginosa. Antioxidant activity of all newlineselected plants was determined by FRAP and DPPH assay methods. The fractions of newlineall plants were recorded with antioxidant potential. In FRAP method the best newlineantioxidant value was found with T. govanianum (2.24±0.10), followed by A. calamus newline(2.16±0.04). On the other hand, in DPPH assay the best IC50 value was observed with newlineA. calamus (28.40) and T. govanianum (44.74) and lowest in R. obtusifolius (57.44). newlineThe selecetd plants were also screened for their phytochemical by GC-MS analysis and newlineresults confirmed the presence of phytochemicals of antioxidant, antimicrobial and newlineother therapeutic potentials as mentioned in the literature. Plant-microbial interaction newlineis also reported to have an impact on the medicinal properties of plants, therefore the newlineselected plants were also investigated for their mycorrhizal association. Glomus newlinemosseae was recorded as dominant AM species in the rhizosphere region of selected newlineplant species. G. mosseae was mass multiplied in-vivo with Sorghum vulgare and then newlinemycorrhizal inoculum was inoculated at10% per pot with rhizomes (A. calamus) and newlineplantlets (P. frutescens) of the two selected plants. After 90 days of growth under newlinepolyhouse, the ethnomedicinal part of the inoculated and control plants were assessed newlinefor their antimicrobial activity, antioxidant potential and presence of important newlinephytochemicals. The results revealed, an increase in antioxidant potential of both the newlinemedicinal plants, however no significant results were observed in antimicrobial newlineproperty of inoculated and non-inoculated plants. Phytochemical analysis of these newlinexi newlinemedicinal plants revealed a variation in terms of quantity (% area) of some newlinephytochemicals in both the plants and some new phytochemicals were also reported in newlineinoculated plants. newlineKeywords: Ethnomedicinal plants, western Himalaya, antimicrobial activity, newlineantioxidant potential, phytochemicals, GC-MS analysis, mycorrhizal diversity.