Ž .Fitoterapia 73 2002 92�94

Short report

Antimicrobial activity and cytotoxicity ofAer�a lanata

Dulaly Chowdhurya, Abu Sayeeda, Anwarul Islama,M. Shah Alam Bhuiyanb,�, G.R.M. Astaq Mohal Khanc

aDepartment of Applied Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Uni�ersity of Rajshahi, Rajshai,Bangladesh

bDepartment of Pharmacy, Uni�ersity of Rajshahi, Rajshai, BangladeshcBCSIR, Rajshahi, Bangladesh

Received 3 May 2001; accepted in revised form 21 July 2001

Abstract

ŽAer�a lanata whole plant showed interesting antimicrobial activities ethyl acetate and. Žmethanol extracts and significant cytotoxic properties petroleum ether, ethyl acetate and.methanol extracts . � 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Aer�a lanata; Antimicrobial activity; Cytotoxicity

Ž .Plant. Aer�a lanata Juss. Amaranthaceae , an important gregarious shrub growing� �throughout Bangladesh, particularly along waste places 1,2 , whole plant was

collected from Dumuria, in the district of Khulna, Bangladesh, in November�

December 1997 and identified by Prof. A.T.M. Naderuzzaman, Department ofBotany, Rajshahi University where a voucher specimen has been deposited.

� Corresponding author.Ž .E-mail address: sbhuiyan3@yahoo.com M. Shah Alam Bhuiyan .

0367-326X�02�$ - see front matter � 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.Ž .PII: S 0 3 6 7 - 3 2 6 X 0 1 0 0 3 6 9 - 0

( )D. Chowdhury et al. � Fitoterapia 73 2002 92�94 93

� �Uses in traditional medicine. As demulcent, diuretic, and in lithiasis 3 . It isvalued for cough, as a vermifuge for children, in the treatment of headache, and in

� �arsenic poisoning 4 .

� �Previously isolated classes of constituents. Alkaloids 5 .

Tested materials. Successive petroleum ether, EtOAc and MeOH cold extractsŽ .yields: 2.99, 1.91 and 1.02%, respectively from the fresh whole plant. Petroleum

� �ether extract gave positive phytochemical tests 6,7 for steroids and flavonoids;EtOAc extract for steroids, terpenes and flavonoids; MeOH extract for steroids,and glycosides; all extracts gave negative test for alkaloids.

Studied activity. Antibacterial and antifungal activity by disc diffusion method� � Ž . � �8�10 , cytotoxicity by Artemia salina Brine shrimp lethality 11 .

Used microorganisms. Listed in Table 1.

Table 1Antibacterial and antifungal activity of Aer�a lanata extracts

Ž .Microorganisms Zone of inhibition diameter mm

Petrol extract EtOAc extract MeOH extract KanamycinŽ . Ž . Ž . Ž .200 �g�disc 200 �g�disc 200 �g�disc 30 �g�disc

BacteriaGram-positive

Bacillus subtilis 10 12 10 22Bacillus cereus 14 16 9 27Staphylococcus aureus � 9 8 23

Gram-negativeEscherichia coli 7 13 9 25Shigella dysenteriae 9 18 14 26Shigella shiga 11 12 10 21Shigella sonnei 9 10 12 20Shigella flexneriae � 7 � 24Shigella boydii 8 9 11 22Klebsiella sp. � � 9 18

Fungi ClotrimazoleAspergillus fumigatus � � � 21Aspergillus niger � 9 10 20Candida albicans � 8 9 22Hensinela californica � � 6 19Rhizopus oligosporum � � 6 18

‘�’� no inhibition.

( )D. Chowdhury et al. � Fitoterapia 73 2002 92�9494

Table 2Cytotoxicity of Aer�a lanata extracts

2Extracts LC 95% Confidence Regression � value50Ž . Ž .ppm limits ppm equation

Petroleum ether 28.21 16.79�47.36 Y � 2.44 � 1.76 X 0.026EtOAc 20.37 11.27�36.79 Y � 3.11 � 1.44 X 0.126MeOH 22.41 15.12�46.20 Y � 2.72 � 1.60 X 0.234

� �Gallic acid 12 4.53 3.33�6.15 Y � 3.93 � 1.62 X 1.250

Ž .Results. Reported in Table 1 antibacterial and antifungal activity and Table 2Ž .cytotoxicity .

Conclusions. Among the tested extracts of A. lanata, the ethyl acetate extractexhibited the more interesting antibacterial and antifungal activity. On the con-trary, all tested extracts showed significant cytotoxic activity.

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