The genus Hypericum--a valuable resource of anti-Staphylococcal leads.
In the present study, extracts of 34 species and varieties of the genus Hypericum were screened for activity against a clinical isolate of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, which in addition possessed a multidrug efflux mechanism conferring a high level of resistance to therapeutically useful antibiotics. Thirty-three of the 34 chloroform extracts showed significant activity in a disk diffusion assay, and five extracts had minimum inhibitory concentrations of 64 microg/ml, indicating that this genus has great potential to yield compounds with potent activity against multidrug-resistant bacteria.
Gibbons
Simon
S
Centre for Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy, The School of Pharmacy, University of London, 29-39 Brunswick Square, London WC1N 1AX, UK. simon.gibbons@ulsop.ac.uk
Ohlendorf
Birgit
B
Johnsen
Inga
I
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D020902:Hypericum; D016106:Methicillin Resistance; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000188:drug therapy; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects*
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D010936:Plant Extracts