Antibacterial and Antifungal Activities of Launaea nudicaulis (Roxb.) And Launaea resedifolia (Linn.)

Abstract

ntibacterial and antifungal activities of some extracts of Launaea nudicaulis and L. resedifolia have been determined by standard methods. Methanol extract of L. nudicaulis and L. resedifolia showed 18.5 and 20.5 mm zones of inhibition against B. subtilis, respectively, as determined by disc diffusion method. Ethanol and DMSO extracts also exhibited antibacterial activities against E. coli and S. aureus but to lower degrees. When these activities were measured by well-method, all these extracts exhibited high activities against K. pneumoniae and low against E. coli compared with the control. Antifungal activity was determined by measuring the linear growth in slants on 4th day of incubation against an Aspergilus spp. Methanolic extracts of L. nudicaulis and L. resedifolia at 0.209 mg/ml levels exhibited 45±6 mm and 37±6 mm linear growth which decreased to 22±5 mm and 28±4 mm, respectively, at 0.838 mg/ml concentration.