Antimicrobial activity of flower extract, Hibiscus rosa sinensis

Baronda, P.C.D.1., Ecito, K.A.1, Llones, R.V.1, Udtujan, M.1

Leyte Normal University
Tacloban City

Keywords: antimicrobial, flower extract, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, Agar disc method

Introduction:

Disease causing bacteria spread in seconds that usually cause infections from organism to

organism, especially if unsuspected, leading to fatality of the infected organism if left untreated.

Antibiotics is known as a treatment for these infections, whereof, as time passes these antibiotics

also loses their effectiveness because of these diseases adapts and become resistant to antibiotics.

(Kowti, et al., 2010)

The use of medicinal plants is widely used in traditional and modern medicine. In ancient

times, plants are used for treatment or remedy to almost all of the diseases. (Selvi, Isaivani, &

Karpagam, 2012) Despite the remarkable progress in synthetic organic medicinal products of the

twentieth century, over 25% of prescribed medicines in industrialized countries are derived

directly or indirectly from plants (Newman et al., 2000). Undoubtedly, medicinal plants are the

prime source of drugs in both developing and developed nations, as drugs or herbal extracts for

various chemotherapeutic purposes. (Kowti, et al., 2010) Medicinal plants possess many

potentially valuable therapeutic agents that provide an impetus for further search (Recio and Rios,

1989). Testing micro-organisms for their susceptibility to antimicrobials is a commonplace

laboratory procedure that serves as an important aid to chemotherapeutic intervention in cases of

infection. (Irobia, Moo-Younga, Anderson, & Daramolab, 1994). Today, people who cannot afford

medicines, still used plants for their remedies.

Hibiscus rosa-sinensis is a tropical plant and shrub that is about 10 feet tall (Gilman, 1999)

under the family Malvaceae. It’s common name is Tropical Hibiscus or Chinese Hibiscus.

Throughout the tropics this plant is found commonly and it is planted as a house plant throughout

the world (Kumar and Singh, 2012). It is well accepted that the leaves and flowers of this plant

have many medicinal uses which has made this plant a precious one (Upadhyay and Upadhyay,

2011). One disease example is the alopecia which is a type of hair loss that occurs when your

immune system mistakenly attacks hair follicles. (Alopecia Areata, 2014)

This study aims is to test antimicrobial properties Hibiscus rosa-sinensis extracts to the

bacteria E.coli and S.aureus.

Review of Related Literature:

Hibiscus is a genus of plants that includes over 200 species. The tropical hibiscus, Hibiscus

rosa-sinensis, is best known for its showy fl owers and glossy leaves. These plants, available in a

wide range of fl ower colors, are largely synonymous with tropical environments throughout the

world. (Johnson). Hibiscus rosa-sinesis Linn. (Malvaceae) is a glabrous shrub widely cultivated in

the tropics. It is well accepted that the leaves and flowers of Hibiscus rosa-sinesis have hair growth

promoting and antigreying properties. Moreover in India, the herbal products in the market

intended for hair growth include the extract of various parts of Hibiscus rosa sinesis Adhirajan et

al. reported that the leaf extract of Hibiscus rosa-sinesis has a potential effect on maintaining the

hair growth in in-vivo and in-vitro methods. Various parts of this plant, like leaves, flowers and
roots, have been known to possess medicinal properties like aphrodisiac, menorrhagic, oral

contraceptive, laxative, etc.. (Upadhyay & Upadhyay, 2011)

Different extract of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis plant revealed the presence of alkaloids,

glycosides, fatty materials, reducing sugars, resin, sterols and the lack of tannins and Saponins.

Isolation of β-sitosterol, taraxeryl acetate and four uncharacterized compounds which included an

alkaloid and three sterols has been reported in the leaves. (Pekamwar, Kalyankar, & Jadhav, 2013).

The essential oil in the seeds of H. rosa-sinensis has a strong antispasmodic effect and has been

successfully used to ease the pain for intestine pile or kidney colic. The leaves of H. rosa-sinensis

are emollient, aperients, anodyne and laxative, leaves and stembark are used for abortion, fatigue,

skin disease and antiseptic for boils and ulcer. It was also also investigated for their fatty alcohol,

fatty acids and hydrocarbon content. (Essiett & Iwok, 2014; Pekamwar, Kalyankar, & Jadhav,

2013; Divya, Sowmia, Dhanya, & Joona, 2013). The staminal column is diuretic used for kidney

trouble. The flower extract is used internally in the treatment of excessive and painful

menstruation. Flower petals has a variety of uses, salad in Pacific Island, to shine shoes in india,

red flower for tea, made into a kind of pickle or used as a purple dye for colouring foods such as

preserved fruit and cooked vegetables and is known as astringent, demulcent, emollient,

refrigerant, constipating, hypoglycemic, aphrodisiac, emmenagogue and used for treating aloparia,

burning sensation in the body, diabetes and menstrual disorders. (Essiett & Iwok, 2014),
Materials and methods

Plant material

The Hibiscus rosa-sinensis Flowers will be collected at Brgy. 74 Lower Nulatula, Tacloban

City.

Extraction of crude drug

The plant materials will be shade dried and then powdered with the help of a blender. 50g

of the powder was filled in the thimble and extracted successively with petroleum ether,

chloroform and methanol using a Soxhlet extractor for 48 h. All the extracts were concentrated

using rotary evaporator.

Microbial cultures

Antimicrobial activity of flowers extract will be investigated against pure culture bacteria

Escherichia coli and Streptococcus aureus.

Antimicrobial activity

The antimicrobial assay was performed by agar disc diffusion method (Selvi, Isaivani, &

Karpagam, 2012; Balouiri, Sadiki, & Ibnsouda, 2016) Petri dishes were cleaned, dried, sterilized

and filled with nutrient agar medium with uniform thickness. After solidifying, label the plates

into 5 for control, 25, 50, 75 and 100 μg/ml concentration of the flower extract, then inoculate and

streak evenly the plates with the bacterial strains such Escherichia coli and Streptococcus aureus,

Then, filter paper discs (about 6 mm in diameter), containing the flower extract at a desired

concentration, are placed on the agar surface. All the Petri dishes were incubated at 37ºC for 24
hrs. The assessment of antibacterial activity was based on the measurement of diameter of

inhibition zone formed and the zone was measured.

SOLVENTS

Microorganism Methanol Chloroform Petroleum ether

100 75 50 25 C 100 75 50 25 C 100 75 50 25 C

ZONE OF INHIBITION (mm)

E. coli

S. aureus
References

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Activity and Phytochemicals in Methanolic Extract of Hibiscusrosa-Sinensis Leaf Extract.

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bark extracts of Bridelia ferruginea (Euphorbiaceae). Journal of Ethnopharmacology 43,

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Johnson, D. W. (n.d.). Tropical Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis) For Galveston County and the

Texas Upper Gulf Coast:. Horticulture Galveston County. Retrieved from

http://www.americanhibiscus.org/

Kowti, R., R, H., Ahmed, M., AR, H., SS, T. G., R, D., . . . M, I. A. (2010, July - September).

Antimicrobial activity of ethanol extract of leaf and flower of Spathodea campanulata P.

Beauv. Research Journal of Pharmaceutical, Biological and Chemical Sciences, 1(3), 691.
Pekamwar, S. S., Kalyankar, T. M., & Jadhav, A. (2013). HIBISCUS ROSA-SINENSIS: A

REVIEW ON ORNAMENTAL PLANT. WORLD JOURNAL OF PHARMACY AND

PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES, 2(6), 4719-4727.

Selvi, V., Isaivani, I., & Karpagam, S. (2012). Studies on antimicrobial activities from flower

extract of Cassia alata Linn. INT J CURR SCI, 299-303. Retrieved from

http://www.currentsciencejournal.info/issuespdf/Selvi-cassia.pdf

Upadhyay, S., & Upadhyay, P. (2011). Hibiscus rosa-sinensis : Pharmacological review.

International Journal of Research in Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, 2(4).

Retrieved from www.ijrpbsonline.com

Alopecia Areata. (2014, March 12). Retrieved from Web MD: http://www.webmd.com/skin-

problems-and-treatments/hair-loss/tc/alopecia-areata-credits

Divya, M., Sowmia, C., Dhanya, K., & Joona, K. (2013). Screening of Antioxidant, Anticancer

Activity and Phytochemicals in Methanolic Extract of Hibiscusrosa-Sinensis Leaf

Extract. Research Journal of Pharmaceutical, Biological and Chemical Sciences, 4(2),

1308-1316.

Essiett, U. A., & Iwok, E. S. (2014). Floral and Leaf Anatomy of Hibiscus Species. American

Journal of Medical and Biological Research, 2(5), 101-117. doi:10.12691/ajmbr-2-5-1

Gilman, E. F. (1999). Hibiscus rosa-sinensis. Fact Sheet FPS-254.

Irobia, O., Moo-Younga, M., Anderson, W., & Daramolab, S. (1994). Antimicrobial activity of

bark extracts of Bridelia ferruginea (Euphorbiaceae). Journal of Ethnopharmacology 43,

185-190.

Johnson, D. W. (n.d.). Tropical Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis) For Galveston County and the

Texas Upper Gulf Coast:. Horticulture Galveston County. Retrieved from

http://www.americanhibiscus.org/

Kowti, R., R, H., Ahmed, M., AR, H., SS, T. G., R, D., . . . M, I. A. (2010, July - September).

Antimicrobial activity of ethanol extract of leaf and flower of Spathodea campanulata P.

Beauv. Research Journal of Pharmaceutical, Biological and Chemical Sciences, 1(3),

691.

Pekamwar, S. S., Kalyankar, T. M., & Jadhav, A. (2013). HIBISCUS ROSA-SINENSIS: A

REVIEW ON ORNAMENTAL PLANT. WORLD JOURNAL OF PHARMACY AND

PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES, 2(6), 4719-4727.

Selvi, V., Isaivani, I., & Karpagam, S. (2012). Studies on antimicrobial activities from flower

extract of Cassia alata Linn. INT J CURR SCI, 299-303. Retrieved from

http://www.currentsciencejournal.info/issuespdf/Selvi-cassia.pdf

Upadhyay, S., & Upadhyay, P. (2011). Hibiscus rosa-sinensis : Pharmacological review.

International Journal of Research in Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, 2(4).

Retrieved from www.ijrpbsonline.com