CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 93Essential Oils and Antimicrobial ActivityMedicinal Plant ResearchPhytochemical Studies and Bioactivities

In vitro antibacterial and cytotoxic activity of leaf extracts of Centella asiatica (L.) Urb, Warburgia salutaris (Bertol. F.) Chiov and Curtisia dentata (Burm. F.) C.A.Sm - medicinal plants used in South Africa

Open access
Soyingbe, Oluwagbemiga Sewanu, Mongalo, Nkoana Ishmael, Makhafola, Tshepiso Jan·2018·BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
DOI 10.1186/s12906-018-2378-3PMC PMC6267026
Open this paper in CoChat — free accountOpen PDF

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Compounds having both anticancer and antimicrobial activity have promising therapeutic potential due to their selective cytotoxicity and their potential to reduce the occurrence of bacterial and fungal infections in immune-compromised cancer patients. In our quest to find new antimicrobial agents with potent anticancer activity, the biological potential of leaves from the three medicinal plants Centella asiatica, Warburgia salutaris and Curtisia dentata as used by Zulu traditional healers for the treatment of cancer is investigated. METHODS: Extracts were assayed for antibacterial activity using the agar well diffusion and micro plate dilution assay. In addition, minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBC), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release assay and rhodamine 6G intake assay were used to ascertain the antibacterial activity. The cytotoxic effects of the plant extracts were determined using tetrazolium-based colorimetric (MTT) cell proliferation assay against MCF-7, human colorectal carcinoma cells (Caco-2), A549 and HeLa cancerous cell lines. RESULTS: values of 41.55, 45.13, 57.35 and 43.24 μg/ml against A549, HeLa, CaCo-2 and MCF-7 cell lines. The extracts further revealed a broad-spectrum antibacterial activity against bacterial strains used in the study. An acetone extract from W. salutaris revealed the highest zone of inhibition and the lowest minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 21.0 mm and 0.16 mg/ml respectively against Staphylococcus aureus. Methanol extract from W. salutaris and ethyl acetate extract from C. dentata revealed 53% inhibition of R6G inside the cell against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli respectively in a cytosolic lactate dehydrogenase assay, suggesting that the mode of action of such extracts may be through efflux pump. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the extracts had good antibacterial activity and anti-proliferative effects against selected cancerous cell lines. Given the good antibacterial activity of the extracts the plants may act as an immune booster and prevent infection in immunosuppressed cancer patients. This is further supported by the plants' anti-proliferative potential, bacteriostatic, bactericidal properties and also their ability to block bacterial efflux pump systems.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1186/s12906-018-2378-3

Cites

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Centella triterpenoids can be considered as phytoanticipins against wide range of bacterial, fungal and parasitic agents due to antimicrobial activities, selective cytotoxicity and protective function against pathogenic infections.

    “The Centella triterpenoids can be considered as phytoanticipins against a wide range of bacterial, fungal and parasitic agents due to their antimicrobial activities, selective cytotoxicity and protective function against pathogenic infections.”

    From Therapeutic Properties and Pharmacological Activities of Asiaticoside and Madecassoside: A Review (2023) · cites this paper as [145]

    The Results (page unavailable) report antibacterial activity and cytotoxicity for C. asiatica leaf extracts, which supports only the broad activity portion of the claim. The paper does not establish these effects for Centella triterpenoids or describe them as phytoanticipins protective against bacterial, fungal, and parasitic infections. The Discussion attributes selective cytotoxicity to betulinic acid found in C. dentata, not to Centella triterpenoids. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

No references could be resolved yet.

Research works printed but not linked: 42

  1. [2]Karikas GA Anticancer and chemopreventing natural products: some biochemical and therapeutic aspects J Buon 2010 15 627 638 21229622
  2. [3]Gordaliza M Natural products as leads to anticancer drugs Clin Trans Oncol 2007 9 767 776 10.1007/s12094-007-0138-9 18158980 · DOI
  3. [5]Abera B Medicinal plants used in traditional medicine by Oromo people, Ghimbi District, Southwest Ethiopia J Ethnobiol Ethnomedicine 2014 10 40 10.1186/1746-4269-10-40 PMC4060869 24885586 · DOI
  4. [6]Newman DJ Gordon MC Natural products as sources of new drugs from 1981 to 2014 J Nat Prod 2016 25:79 3 629 661 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.5b01055 26852623 · DOI · Paper page
  5. [7]Adams DH Sanchez-Fueyo A Samuel D From immunosuppression to tolerance J Hepatol 2015 62 170 185 10.1016/j.jhep.2015.02.042 25920086 · DOI
  6. [8]Cristina G Thorsten H Targeting immunosuppression for cancer therapy J Clin Invest 2013 123 6 2355 2357 10.1172/JCI69999 23728169 PMC3668808 · DOI
  7. [9]Christine A Andreas H Stefan K Pneumocystis carinii colonization in the absence of immunosuppression Scand J Infect Diseases 1997 29 6 591 10.3109/00365549709035900 9571740 · DOI
  8. [10]Rasmussen L Arvin A Chemotherapy-induced immunosuppression Environ Health Perspect 1882 43 21 25 10.1289/ehp.824321 PMC1568884 7037385 · DOI
  9. [11]Van Wyk BE The potential of south African plants in the development of new medicinal products S Afr J Bot 2011 77 4 812 829 10.1016/j.sajb.2011.08.011 · DOI
  10. [12]Afolayan AJ Jimoh FO Sofidiya MO Koduru S Lewu FB Medicinal potential of the root of Arctotis arctotoides Pharm Biol 2007 45 486 493 10.1080/13880200701389383 · DOI
  11. [13]Steenkamp V Gouws MC Cytotoxicity of six south African medicinal plant extracts used in the treatment of cancer S Afr J of Bot 2006 72 4 630 633 10.1016/j.sajb.2006.02.004 · DOI
  12. [14]Hutchings A, Scott AH, Lewis G, Cunningham A. Zulu medicinal plants. An: inventory. 1996. Scottsville: University of Natal Press.
  13. [15]Breyer-Brandwijk, MG, Watt JM. The Medicinal and Poisonous Plants of Southern and Eastern Africa. 1962; 2nd Edition, E. and S. Livingstone Ltd., Edinburgh.
  14. [16]Rabe T, Van-Staden J. Isolation of an antibacterial sesquiter-penoid from Warburgia salutaris. J Ethnopharmacol. 2000;73:171–4. 11025153
  15. [17]Mahlori JM Munaka CM Siegfried ED A drimane sesquiterpenoid lactone from Warburgia salutaris Phytochemistry 1999 51 435 438 10.1016/S0031-9422(98)00753-5 · DOI
  16. [20]Eloff JN A sensitive and quick method to determine the minimal inhibitory concentration of plant extracts for bacteria Planta Med 1998 64 711 713 10.1055/s-2006-957563 9933989 · DOI · Paper page
  17. [21]Soyingbe OS Oyedeji AO Basson AK Singh M Opoku AR Chemical composition, antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of the essential oils of Tulbaghia violacea Harv L.F Afr J Microbiol Res 2013 7 1787 1793, 30 10.5897/AJMR12.1156 · DOI
  18. [22]Korzeniewski C Callewaert DM An enzyme- release assay for natural cytotoxicity J Immunol Meth 1983 64 313 320 10.1016/0022-1759(83)90438-6 6199426 · DOI
  19. [23]Badovinac V Trajkovic V Mostarica-Stojkovic M Nitric oxide promotes growth and major Histocompati-bility complex-unrestricted cytotoxicity of interleukin- 2-activated rat lymphocytes Scand J Immunol 2000 52 62 70 10.1046/j.1365-3083.2000.00753.x 10886785 · DOI
  20. [24]Tadić VM Jeremic I Dobric S Isakovic A Markovic I Trajkovic V Bojovic D Arsic I Anti-inflammatory, Gastroprotective, and cytotoxic effect of Sideritis scardica extracts Planta Med 2012 78 415 427 10.1055/s-0031-1298172 22274814 · DOI
  21. [25]Soyingbe OS Oyedeji AO Basson AK Opoku AR The essential oil of Eucalyptus grandis W. hill ex maiden inhibits microbial growth by inducing membrane damage Chin Med 2013 4 7 14 10.4236/cm.2013.41002 · DOI
  22. [26]Maesaki S Marichal P Bossche HV Sangland D Kohno S Rhodamine 6G efflux for the detection of CDR1-overrxpressing azole-resistant Candida albicans strains J Antimicrob Chemother 1999 44 27 31 10.1093/jac/44.1.27 10459807 · DOI · Paper page
  23. [27]Mosmann T. Rapid colorimetric assay for cellular growth and survival: application to proliferation and cytotoxicity assays. J. Immunol. Methods1983;65:55–63. 6606682
  24. [28]Sasidharan S Chen Y Saravanan D Sundram KM Yoga LL (2011). Extraction, isolation and characterization of bioactive compounds from plants’ extracts. Afr J Trad Complementary Altern Med 2011 8 1 10 10.1625/jcam.8.1 PMC3218439 22238476 · DOI
  25. [29]Cosa P Vlietinck AJ Berghe DV Maes L Anti-infective potential of natural products: how to develop a stronger in vitro ‘proof-of-concept’ J Ethnopharmacol 2006 106 290 302 10.1016/j.jep.2006.04.003 16698208 · DOI
  26. [30]Vickers A Botanical medicines for the treatment of cancer: rationale, overview of current data, and methodological considerations for phase I and II trials Cancer Investig 2002 20 1069 1079 10.1081/CNV-120005926 12449740 · DOI
  27. [31]El-Shemy HA Aboul-Enein AM Aboul-Enein MI Issa SI Fujita K The effect of willow leaf extracts on human leukemic cells in vitro J Biochem Mol Biol 2003 36 387 389 12895297
  28. [32]Zaidan MR Noor Rain A Badrul AR Adlin A Norazah A Zakiah I In vitro screening of five local medicinal plants for antibacterial activity using disc diffusion method Trop Biomed 2005 22 165 170 16883283
  29. [35]Rabe T Van Staden J Antibacterial activity of south African plants used for medicinal purposes J Ethnopharmacol 1997 56 81 87 10.1016/S0378-8741(96)01515-2 9147258 · DOI
  30. [36]Abebe WA Bucar F Gibbons S Asres K Sesquiterpenes from Warburgia ugandensis and their antimycobacterial activity Phytochemistry 2005 66 2309 2315 10.1016/j.phytochem.2005.07.018 16153670 · DOI
  31. [37]Fadipe VO Mongalo NI Opoku AR. In vitro evaluation of the comprehensive antimicrobial and antioxidant properties of Curtisia dentate (Burm.F) C.a SM: toxicological effect on the human embryonic kidney (HEK293) and human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cell lines 2015 EXCLI J 2015 14 971 983 27065768 PMC4822083
  32. [38]Nielsen TR Kuete V Jager AK Mayer JJM Lall N Antimicrobial activity of selected south African medicinal plants BMC Comp Alt Med 2012 12 74 10.1186/1472-6882-12-74 PMC3479042 22704594 · DOI
  33. [39]Doughari JH Ndakidemi PA Human IS Benade S Antioxidant, antimicrobial and antiverotoxic potentials of extracts of Curtisia dentata J Ethnopharmacol 2012 14 141 1041 1050 10.1016/j.jep.2012.03.051 22504170 · DOI
  34. [40]Kaur GJ, Arora DS. Antibacterial and phytochemical screening of Anethum graveolens. Foeniculum vulgure and Trachysprmum ammi BMC Complement Altern Med. 2009;9(30):1–10. PMC2736926 19656417
  35. [41]Cox SD Mann CM Markham JL Bell HC Gustafson JE Warmington JR Wyllie SG The mode of antimicrobial action of essential oil of Melaleuca alternifola (tea tree oil) J Appl Microbiol 2000 88 170 175 10.1046/j.1365-2672.2000.00943.x 10735256 · DOI · Paper page
  36. [42]Dambudzo P Rebamang M Simelane M Basson A Okoh A Opoku A Evaluation of the anti-listeria potentials of some plant-derived triterpenes Annals Clin Microbiol Antimicrob 2014 13 37 1 7 PMC4115164 25056181
  37. [44]Sagbo IJ Afolayan AJ Bradley G Antioxidant, antibacterial and phytochemical properties of two medicinal plants against the wound infecting bacteria A Pacific J Trop Biomed 2017 7 9 817 825 10.1016/j.apjtb.2017.08.009 · DOI · Paper page
  38. [46]Babu TD Kuttan G Padikkala J Cytotoxic and anti-tumour properties of certain taxa of Umbelliferae with special reference to Centella asiatica (L.) urban J Ethnopharmacol 1995 48 5 57 10.1016/0378-8741(95)01284-K 8569247 · DOI
  39. [47]Pittella F Dutra RC Junior DD Lopes MTP Barbosa NR Antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of Centella asiatica (L) Urb Int J Mol Sci 2009 10 9 3713 3721 10.3390/ijms10093713 19865514 PMC2769141 · DOI · Paper page
  40. [48]Pisha E Chai H Lee IS Chagwedera TE Farnsworth NR Cordell GA Pezzuto JM Discovery of betulinic acid as a selective inhibitor of human melanoma that functions by induction of apoptosis Nat Med 1995 1 10 1046 1051 10.1038/nm1095-1046 7489361 · DOI
  41. [49]Mans DRA Rocha ABD Schwartsmann G Anti-cancer drug discovery and development in Brazil: targeted plant collection as a rational strategy to acquire candidate anti-cancer compounds Oncologist 2000 5 185 198 10.1634/theoncologist.5-3-185 10884497 · DOI · Paper page
  42. [50]Soyingbe OS Myeni CB Osunsanmi OF Lawal OA Opoku AR (2015). Antimicrobial and efflux pumps inhibitory activities of Eucalyptus grandis essential oil against respiratory tract infectious bacteria J Med Plants Res 2015 9 10 343 348 10.5897/JMPR2015.5652 · DOI

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Soyingbe, O. S., Mongalo, N. I., & Makhafola, T. J.
Affiliations
  • Mangosuthu University of Technology (ZA)
  • University of South Africa (ZA)
Corresponding author
Soyingbe, Oluwagbemiga Sewanu
ORCID
Venue
BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2018-11-29
Volume
18
Issue
1
Pages
315-315
ISSN
1472-6882 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1186/s12906-018-2378-3
PMC
PMC6267026
OpenAlex
W2903537131
Cited by
93
References
0
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 3
FWCI
4.25
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Unisa Institutional Repository (University of South Africa) (submittedVersion)
Funders
National Research Foundation South Africa (113595)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Essential Oils and Antimicrobial Activity
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Plant Science › Medicinal Plant Research
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Phytochemical Studies and Bioactivities
Keywords
Centella asiatica, Warburgia salutaris, leaf extract, antibacterial activity, cytotoxicity, anticancer activity, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, efflux pumps, lactate dehydrogenase release, MCF-7 cells, colorectal cancer cells, A549 cells, HeLa cells, immune support, medicinal plants, South Africa
MeSH terms
Anti-Bacterial Agents, Cell Survival, Escherichia coli, Humans, Microbial Sensitivity Tests, Plant Extracts, Plants, Medicinal, South Africa, Staphylococcus aureus, Triterpenes, Caco-2 Cells, Centella

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review