1Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Science King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
2Department of Botany (Microbiology), Faculty of Science Cairo University, Giza, 12613, Egypt.
3Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, Texas Southern University, USA.
The antimicrobial properties of the crude and pure extracts of Nerium oleander were investigated against three Gram -ve bacteria (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Salmonella enteritidis), three Gram +ve bacteria (Bacillus subtilis, Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus) and six fungal species (Aspergillus flavus, A. fumigatus, A. niger, Fusarium moniliforme, Penicillium expansum and Rhizopus oryzae). The crude extract of N. oleander was more effective than purified compound. The maximum antimicrobial activities (15 and 20 mm inhibition zone) was exhibited by the crude extract of N. oleander against the most sensitive isolates (B. subtilis and A. flavus), respectively, while all pure constituents showed trace to no antimicrobial activity against the tested microorganisms. The lowest value (25 μg/ml) of minimum inhibitory concentration of the active crude extract of N. oleander was revealed with A. flavus.
Nerium oleander, cytotoxicity, antimicrobial activity
