Abstract

Medicinal plants have been used from centuries for human’s benefit. Due to immense importance of medicinal plants in human’s life this research project was designed to investigate the antibacterial activity of aqueous extracts from roots of eleven plants selected from flora of Pakistan. Experimental evidence showed that water extracts of all the roots were inactive except those of Z. officinalis (Ginger), A. sativum (Garlic), A. cepa (onion), Z. officinalis (sonth). The activity of water extracts of active roots was found to enhance with the increase in the concentration of the root materials. Out of 11 plant roots tested, four showed antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The most active antibacterial species was Z. officinalis (Ginger), which completely inhibited the development of both E-coli and S-aureus. The water extracts of roots were found active against both the bacteria. Oil extracts of Ginger, Garlic and onion were also found to be active against E.coli and S. aureus. The residues left after oil extraction were found to be inactive.

Keywords: Antibacterial activity; Medicinal plant; Oil extracts; Traditional plants of Pakistan