In vitro antibacterial activity of Bunium persicum and Rheum ribes on Acinetobacter baumanii

Introduction: Using antibiotics to control pathogenic bacteria is associated with certain side effects in addition to emergence of drug resistance. Nowadays, researchers are considering using plants as suitable alternatives to antibiotics. The aim of study was to compare in vitro antimicrobial activities of aqueous and hydroalcoholic Bunium persicum and Rheum ribes L. extracts on Acinetobacter baumanii. Materials and methods: Different concentrations of R. ribes and B. persicum were prepared to determine microbial sensitivity of A. baumanii using disk diffusion, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). Results: The highest MIC (256 µg/ml) against A. baumanii was derived for aqueous R. ribes and B. persicum extracts and the lowest MIC (128 µg/ml) for their hydroalcoholic extracts. The highest MBC (512 µg/ml) was derived for aqueous R. ribes extract and the lowest MBC (256 µg/ml) for aqueous and hydroalcoholic R. ribes and B. persicum and hydroalcoholic R. ribes extracts. The extracts exhibited great inhibitory effects against the studied bacteria in disk diffusion; and with increasing the extracts’ concentrations, the inhibitory effect was exhibited more markedly as increased diameter of inhibition zone. Conclusion: Hydroalcoholic R. ribes and B. persicum extracts can be used as nature-based compounds to control A. baumanii.