Abstract

An ethanol extract of Terminalia chebula fruit was studied for its antibacterial activity against clinically important standard reference bacterial strains. The antimicrobial susceptibility was screened using the disc diffusion method and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined using the broth microdilution method. The results showed that it was active against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The T. chebula fruit extract was highly effective against Salmonella typhi SSFP 4S, Staphylococcus epidermidis MTCC 3615, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Bacillus subtilis MTCC 441 andPseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853. The MIC was determined as 1 mg/ml forS. typhi. These results indicate that the T. chebula dry fruit possesses a potential broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity and a search for the active compound is needed.

Key words: Terminalia chebula, fruit, antibacterial susceptibility test, disc diffusion, broth microdilution, MIC.