Antibacterial potential of Calotropis procera [flower] extract against various pathogens

Increased bacterial resistance towards commonly used antibiotics has become a debated issue all over the world in a last few decades. Due to this, consumer demand towards natural anti-microbial agents is increasing day by day

Natural anti-microbial agents have gained enormous attention as an alternative therapeutic agent in pharmaceutical industry

Current study is an effort to explore and identify a bactericidal potential of various solvent extracts of Calotropis procera flower

Flowers of C. procera were extracted with hexane, butanol, ethyl acetate and aqua to evaluate the antibacterial activity by agar well diffusion method against the various human pathogens. The microorganisms used in this study includes Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coll [O157:H7], Micrococcus luteus KJBGE-IB20 [Gen Bank accession: JQ250612] and methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus [MRSA] KIBGE-IB23 [Gen Bank accession: KC465400]

Zones of inhibition were observed against all four pathogenic strains. Fraction soluble in hexane showed broad spectrum of inhibition against all the studied pathogens. However, fractions soluble in ethyl acetate inhibited the growth of E. coll, MRSA, and M. luteus. In case of butanol and aqueous extracts only growth of M. luteus was inhibited. Results revealed that the flower extracts of C. procera have a potential to be used as an antibacterial agent against these pathogenic organisms

Two new diarylesters from Ipomoea cairica

Ipomoea cairica L. Sweet, used in Brazilian folk medicine for curing rheumatism and inflammations. Two new compounds cairicate [1] and methoxycairicate [2] were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract from I. cairica together with one known compound myristyl alcohol reported for the first time from this plant. The structures of compounds were elucidated through spectrometric methods

1', 2'-0-Isopropylidene murrangatin from Murraya paniculata

A new coumarin, l',2'-O-isopropylidene murrangatin [1] was isolated from the aerial parts of Murrayapaniculata. The structure of this compound was determined through spectral analysis. This compound has been isolated for the first time from biological source

Phytochemical studies of Berberis aristata

Four alkaloids, pakistanine [1], 1-O-methylpakistanine [2], pseudopalmatine chloride [3] and pseudoberberine chloride [4] were isolated for the first time from Berberis aristata. The structures of these compounds were identified through comparison of their spectral data with those of the corresponding compounds reported in literature