Antimicrobial activity in vitro of plumbagin isolated from Plumbago species

• Published in: Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz Vol. 98; no. 7; pp. 959 - 961
• Main Authors: de Paiva, Selma Ribeiro, Figueiredo, Maria Raquel, Aragão, Tânia Verônica, Kaplan, Maria Auxiliadora Coelho
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Brazil Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Ministério da Saúde 01-10-2003; Fundação Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ)
• Subjects: Anti-Infective Agents - isolation & purification; Anti-Infective Agents - pharmacology; antimicrobial activity; Candida albicans; Candida albicans - drug effects; Escherichia coli - drug effects; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Naphthoquinones - isolation & purification; Naphthoquinones - pharmacology; PARASITOLOGY; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; plumbagin; Plumbaginaceae; Plumbago scandens; Salmonella typhimurium - drug effects; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - drug effects; TROPICAL MEDICINE; Plumbago scandens; plumbagin; antimicrobial activity
• ISSN: 0074-0276; 1678-8060; 0074-0276; 1678-8060
• DOI: 10.1590/s0074-02762003000700017

Plumbagin is a naturally occurring naphthoquinone isolated from roots of Plumbago scandens. The plant was collected at the Campus of Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. P. scandens is used as a traditional medicine for the treatment of several diseases. The antimicrobial activity of plumbagin was evaluated using the macrodilution method. The compound exhibited relatively specific activity against bacteria and yeast. The minimum inhibitory concentration test showed the growth inhibiton of Staphylococcus aureus at a concentration of 1.56 g/ml and of Candida albicans at a concentration of 0.78 g/ml. These results suggest the naphthoquinone plumbagin as a promising antimicrobial agent.