Abstract

Sansevieria roxburghiana Schult. & Schult. f. (Agavaceae), called Murva in Sanskrit and Hindi, Marul in Tamil, Indian bowstring hemp in English is a herbaceous perennial plant with short fleshy stem and stout rootstock, occurring in eastern coastal region of India. The stem part (rhizome) of this species is used to heal wounds in animals and also used to treat toothache. The rhizomes are mucilaginous and used in consumptive complaints, long lasting chronic persistent coughs, for quick relief of common cough and cold, in ear pain. Despite these uses, no published works are available for the antimicrobial property of stem part of this plant. Hence in the present study, an attempt has been made to access its therapeutic potential. The study was therefore aimed to investigate the antibacterial effects of ethanolic extracts of rhizome of S. roxburghiana against gram negative bacteria such asSalmonella Typhi, Pseudomonas fluorescens, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli.  The pathogens were tested by disc diffusion assay method and minimum inhibitory concentration was evaluated. An attempt has been made to compare the activity of extract with standard ciprofloxin.

Key words: Salmonella, Escherichia coli, gram negative, marul, Sansevieria, antibacterial.