Studies on Antimicrobial Properties of Vegetable, Fruit & Spice ...

<strong>Studies</strong> on….INTRODUCTIONSuvro Saha et.al.The antibacterial properties of plant extracts have been a searing area for investigators ofmicrobiology, pharmacology and related fields. Although there is a great sum of progress incontaining infectious diseases and the development of new drugs, diseases caused by variouspathogenic microorganisms are still contemplated to be a major threat to public health 1 . Thesepathogens have become resistant to many traditionally used antimicrobial agents. In the past fewdecades it is observed that there is a dramatic increase in microbial resistance to antimicrobial agents,therefore this has led the scientific community to ascertain new antimicrobials and consequently toformulate new drugs. A global problem of mortality due to drug-resistant infections and relatedillnesses is found on the rise at an alarming rate. An estimated twenty five thousand patients succumbto death as a result of antibiotic resistant in Europe each year and embody a cost of $1·85 billion 3 andin the USA an estimated $20 billion a year 4 alone and so in the Asian countries and the other parts ofthe world. It is thought that the antimicrobial resistance is one of the three greatest threats to humanhealth by The World Health Organization. The nosocomial infections are thought to be more severeworldwide meritoriously escape the effects of ratified antibacterial drugs 5-7 . This nature of antibioticpipeline struggle may actually alter the exercise of medicine as it is known.It is comprehended that the operational life span of any antibiotic is limited, for this reason there isgrowing interest of clinical microbiologists for antimicrobial plant extracts as these phytochemicalsmay find their way into the store of antimicrobial drugs recommended by physicians, several of whichhave already being tested on humans. It is exciting to note that, two or three antibiotics resulting frommicroorganisms are propelled each year 8 . Of late, the plant compounds their extracts are relishingboundless popularity and the sales of these medicines increase enormously. Factually, plants offer anatural source of creativeness for novel drug compounds, as plant derived medicines have made hugeimpacts on human health and well-being. Over fifty percent of the western drugs are understood tohave derived from plant materials 9 moreover these antibiotics made from these sources have not beenfound to cause side effects and are also found to be less expensive 10,11.Peels and shells of vegetables, fruits and spices are discarded as garbage and a great amount of suchwastes are produced during industrial processing. Most of the time these wastes are utilized asbiofertilizers but using this agro waste therapeutically is an innovative concept which is graduallygaining acceptance moreover, these are novel, natural, eco-friendly and biodegradable. These highlyeconomic sources for deriving antimicrobials, can be used in prevention of diseases caused bypathogenic microbes. It was estimated that only citrus waste amount was to approximately 350,000tons per year. This is probably a new alternative way of waste management. The current work focuseson the extraction and assay of antimicrobial components from peels and shells of vegetables, fruitsand spices. Peels and shells: orange (Citrus sinensis) peels, stone apple (Aeglem armelos) shells,coconut (Cocos nucifera) shells, pea (Pisum sativum) peels, jack fruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus)peels, Banana Inflorescence peel, pumpkin (Cucurbit apepol) peels, watermelon (Citrullus lanatus)peels, black cardamom (Amomum subulatum) peels, nutmeg (Myristica fragrans) shells. MicrobialCultures: Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Proteusvulgaris, Lactococcus lactis, Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans, Sporotrichum pruinosum.MATERIALS AND METHODSPlant Materials: Fresh samples of fruits, spices and nuts were obtained from industrial wastes. Theywere thoroughly washed with tap water. After air-drying, the peels were separated and cut into small1887 J. Chem. Bio. Phy. Sci. Sec. B; 2013, Vol.3, No.3; 1886-1899.