Antimicrobial activity of three endemic Verbascum species

Abstract

The extracts obtained from three Verbascum L. species (Verbascum olympicum Boiss., Verbascum prusianum Boiss., and Verbascum bombyciferum Boiss.) have been investigated for their antimicrobial activity. Growth inhibition, using the agar disc diffusion assay, was determined against Escherichia coli ATCC 11230, Micrococcus luteus La 2971, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538P, Salmonella thyphi ATCC 19430, Klebsiella pneumoniae UC57, Pseudomonas aeroginosa ATCC 27893, Corynebacterium xerosis CCM 2824, Bacillus cereus ATCC 7064, Bacillus megaterium DSM 32, Mycobacterium smegmatis CCM 2067, Proteus vulgaris ATCC 8427, Candida albicans ATCC 10231, Rhodotorula rubra, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae ATCC 9763. We found that Verbascum L. species showed antimicrobial activity against the Gr(+) bacteria and yeasts, but no activity was seen against the Gr(-) bacteria used in this study.