Antimicrobial, antioxidant and chemopreventive potential of Vitamin C rich fruits.

ABSTRACT

The aqueous and methanolic extracts of Carambola, Guava. Kiwi, Papaya and Strawberry were evaluated for their antimicrobial, antioxidant and chemopreventive potential. The in vitro antimicrobial activity was performed by Agar well diffusion method Muller Hinton Agar medium against E. coli. and all the extracts showed significant antimicrobial activity. MIC values against E. coli. were also calculated by macrobroth dilution assay. The activity may be due to the high phenolic content in the fruits. Antioxidant capacity and chemopreventive ability of these extracts was also assayed in which Kiwi fruit was best among all the selected fruits. Natural compounds from these fruits can be further extracted and used as an alternative to synthetic drugs.