Abstract

ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF DICHLOROMETHANE (DCM) EXTRACT OF CUSCUTA REFLEXA STEM

Sanjita Bista*, Ranjan Paudel, Sujit Kamat, Asmita Bhatta, Esmarika Shrestha, Sabita Shrestha, Gopal Pokhrel, Sushil Regmi and Himal Barakoti

ABSTRACT

Cuscuta reflexa is a yellowish-green, leafless, thread-like parasitic twinning herb that grows on several host plants. Often referred to as a miracle medicinal plant, this plant has been used traditionally for the treatment of headache, bone fracture, fever and rheumatism but still, the complete scientific overview has been lacking. This study was designed to evaluate the antibacterial activity of Cuscuta reflexa stem extract using Dichloromethane (DCM) as solvent. After the phytochemical screening, different concentrations of extract were prepared using Dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) as solvent ranging from 25-125 mg/ml. The antibacterial activity of the extract was assessed using the Kirby Bauer disc diffusion method which was later compared with the activity of Ciprofloxacin as a standard drug. All the observations were analyzed using the values of Zone of Inhibition (ZOI). The DCM extract of Cuscuta reflexa at a concentration of 25-125 mg/ml exhibited a broad spectrum of antibacterial activity against all tested bacteria. The maximum experimented dose of 125mg/ml showed a zone of inhibition (ZOI) for Acinetobacter, E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillussubtilis and Klebsiella pneumoniae at a range of 12-14mm. Its activity at this dose (125 mg/ml) against these organisms comparably was less but was found close to the activity by ciprofloxacin at a dose of 5mcg. The findings suggested that the DCM extract of Cuscuta reflexa possesses broad-spectrum antibacterial activity and the effective utilization of the plant can bring out a concomitant therapeutic agent.

Keywords: Antibacterial, Cuscuta reflexa, Disc diffusion method, Drug resistance.