Background: Few studies showed that
Dracaena cinnabari
resin, collected from Soqotra Island, Yemen, has antimicrobial activity. This study
is the first to investigate antimicrobial activity of the resin on both antibiotic multi-resistant human pathogens and on poly-microbial culture.
Material and Methods: Antimicrobial activity of ethanolic extract of
Dracaena cinnabari resin from Soqotra Island on multidrug resistant
Gram-positive and Gram-negative human ATCC standard pathogens and
Ascosphaera apis
, the causal organism of chalkbrood disease of
honeybee was studied using the agar disc diffusion method. The minimal inhibitory concentration of extracts was carried out by the broth micro
dilution method.
Results: Ethanolic extract of
Dracaena cinnabari resin showed a considerable antimicrobial activity against all the pathogens tested. The zone
of inhibition were between 4.9-11.5 mm. The most sensitive microbe was
Staphylococcus aureus
and least sensitive was
Aspergillus nidulans
.
The minimal inhibitory concentration of the extract against
Escherichia. coli
ATCC 10402,
Klebsiella pneumonia
ATCC 10031, and
Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29212 was 1.25 μg/mL (w/v) and for the other pathogens (
Candida albicans
ATCC 10231,
Salmonella typhimurum
ATCC 3311 and
Pseudomonos aeruginosa
ATCC 2785) was 2.5 μg/mL (w/v).
Conclusion: Ethanolic extract of
Dracaena cinnabari resin has a considerable antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative
human pathogens and fungi. This extract might possess a role in the management of microbial infections in human and honeybee disease.
