Evaluation of Antimicrobial Potential of Lower Shivalik Hill Plants Against Antibiotic Resistant Strains

Abstract

newline Antibiotic resistance developed by microorganisms is one of the serious issues encountered by medical practitioners. Inappropriate use of antibiotics viz., small dose, less treatment time, and incorrect dosage interval increases antibiotic resistance among microorganisms and can cause severe effects on patient health. Medicinal plant-based antimicrobial agents can be used as an alternate source to treat microbial infections caused by antibiotic-resistant microorganisms. As plant-based antimicrobial agents have the least side effects, researchers are more interested in the development of pharmacognosy medicines. The present work was designed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of plant samples collected from lower Shivalik hills and its fringes against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The plant leaves were extracted in different solvents like aqueous, ethanol, and methanol using Soxhlet apparatus and dried using Rota evaporator. The screening of potent plant extracts was done first against MTCC cultures procured from IMTECH, Chandigarh and the best potent extracts were further tested against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The antibiotic-resistant bacteria were isolated from the local hospital and identified by using Vitek 2 and DNA sequencing method. Three Gram-positive bacteria were identified as Kocuria kristinae and Staphylococcus vitulinus and Staphylococcus sp. whereas the other four Gram-negative bacteria as Pantoea sp. and Sphingomonas paucimobilis, Pseudomonas sp. and Acinetobacter sp. The methanolic leaf extracts of A. vasica, R. communis and W. fruticosa were observed as potent antimicrobial extracts. The extracts were further screened for phytochemical analysis by biochemical and by GCMS analysis. All three plant extracts were found to consist of active phytochemicals reported for pharmacological importance.