title: Phylogenetic spectrum and analysis of antibacterial activities of leaf extracts from plants of the genus Rhododendron.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Plants are traditionally used for medicinal treatment of numerous human disorders including infectious diseases caused by microorganisms. Due to the increasing resistance of many pathogens to commonly used antimicrobial agents, there is an urgent need for novel antimicrobial compounds. Plants of the genus Rhododendron belong to the woody representatives of the family Ericaceae, which are typically used in a range of ethno-medical applications. There are more than one thousand Rhododendron species worldwide. The Rhododendron-Park Bremen grows plants representing approximately 600 of the known Rhododendron species, and thus enables research involving almost two thirds of all known Rhododendron species.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-six bacterial species representing different taxonomic clades have been used to study the antimicrobial potential of Rhododendron leaf extracts. Agar diffusion assay were conducted using 80% methanol crude extracts derived from 120 Rhododendron species. Data were analyzed using principal component analysis and the plant-borne antibacterial activities grouped according the first and second principal components.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The leaf extracts of 17 Rhododendron species exhibited significant growth-inhibiting activities against Gram-positive bacteria. In contrast, only very few of the leaf extracts affected the growth of Gram-negative bacteria. All leaf extracts with antimicrobial bioactivity were extracted from representatives of the subgenus Rhododendron, with 15 from the sub-section Rhododendron and two belonging to the section Pogonanthum. The use of bacterial multidrug efflux pump mutants revealed remarkable differences in the susceptibility towards Rhododendron leaf extract treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  For the first time, our comprehensive study demonstrated that compounds with antimicrobial activities accumulate in the leaves of certain Rhododendron species, which mainly belong to a particular subgenus. The results suggested that common genetic traits are responsible for the production of bioactive secondary metabolite(s) which act primarily on Gram-positive organisms, and which may affect Gram-negative bacteria in dependence of the activity of multidrug efflux pumps in their cell envelope.
authors: Molecular Life Science Research Center, Jacobs University Bremen, Campus Ring 1, Bremen, 28759, Germany. ah.rezk@jacobs-university.de.
authors: Ahmed
authors: A
authors: Rezk
authors: Institute for Biology and Environmental Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg, Carl von Ossietzky Strasse 9-11, Oldenburg, 26111, Germany. jennifer.nolzen@uni-oldenburg.de.
authors: Jennifer
authors: J
authors: Nolzen
authors: Stiftung Bremer Rhododendronpark, Deliusweg 40, Bremen, 28359, Germany. Schepker@rhododendronpark-bremen.de.
authors: Hartwig
authors: H
authors: Schepker
authors: Institute for Biology and Environmental Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg, Carl von Ossietzky Strasse 9-11, Oldenburg, 26111, Germany. dirk.albach@uni-oldenburg.de.
authors: Dirk C
authors: DC
authors: Albach
authors: Molecular Life Science Research Center, Jacobs University Bremen, Campus Ring 1, Bremen, 28759, Germany. k.brix@jacobs-university.de.
authors: Klaudia
authors: K
authors: Brix
authors: Molecular Life Science Research Center, Jacobs University Bremen, Campus Ring 1, Bremen, 28759, Germany. m.ullrich@jacobs-university.de.
authors: Matthias S
authors: MS
authors: Ullrich
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006090:Gram-Negative Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects*; D006094:Gram-Positive Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D010802:Phylogeny; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018515:Plant Leaves; D029793:Rhododendron; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D010936:Plant Extracts