Screening of Bio-Active Components of Egyptian Aloe vera Herb as Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Agents

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Instructor of microbiology and immunology, Department of microbiology and immunology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Egypt.

Abstract

Background: Antibiotic overdose is a major concern in the emergence and diversity of multidrug-resistant strains of several groups of microorganisms.Purpose of the survey:Screening of the bioactive constituents of the Egyptian Aloe vera herb as antibacterial and antioxidant agents. Methodology:A Botanical Screen of Bio-active Components Showed a promising Therapeutic Value of Aloe Vera as an Antibacterial and Antioxidant, Using In Vitro Broth and Disk Agar Diffusion Methods to Determine Antibacterial and Antifungal Efficacy. A collection of 50 herbal Aloe vera specimens from different grassland soil environments in Egypt was performed. Extraction of the gel leaf was finished after drying with methanol or ethanol solvent. Fractional separation of the active components of the alcoholic extract was achieved using silica gel thin-layer chromatography; then analysis of the active components was performed by mass spectrometry. Furthermore, the detection of the bioactive components responsible for the antibacterial and antifungal effects was performed by in vitro broth and disk agar diffusion methods to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration. The resulting antiviral activity was determined by detecting viral nucleic acids in a specimen obtained from human patients using PCR to exploit the inhibition of viral replication and cytopathic effect. Antioxidant activity was assessed by DPPH assay.Result: Twenty-one components were characterized in Aloe vera gel leaf extract, emodin as the major anthraquinone (26.17%) and the major component was an anthraquinone derivative (34.86%). These compounds exhibited excellent DPPH scavenging ability at an extract concentration that provided 50% inhibition (IC50) of 24.109 mcg/mL, and potent beta-carotene bleaching inhibition with an IC50 of 35.48 mcg/mL after 94 minutes of incubation. The zones of inhibition ranged from 22.7 to 25.14 mm in diameter. Aloe vera's antibacterial and antifungal activity was due to anthraquinone derivatives in our study, and emodin was the anthraquinone primarily responsible for antimicrobial activity against various pathogens.Conclusion: The current study was promising due to its ability to overcome the challenges of multi-resistant strains of multiple groups of microbes and provide alternative herbal antibacterial and anti-carcinogenic antioxidant bioactive components of Aloe vera.

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