ANTIBACTERIAL AND ANTIOXIDANT POTENTIALS OF METHANOL EXTRACT OF PHYLLANTUS AMARUS ON SOME DRUG RESISTANT ISOLATES

The increasing prevalence of drug-resistant bacterial isolates has become a critical global health issue, compromising the effectiveness of conventional antibiotics and leading to higher rates of treatment failure and increased mortality. Therefore, Phyllantus amarus is an erect annual herb cultivated throughout India. It has been found that the local tribes of Dhanbad region of India use the leaves of this plant as an antitussive and an astringent. It is used for the treatment of jaundice, sores, fever, dysentery, and diarrheal infection. The plant extract was prepared by standard procedures. Then the following test procedures which include qualitative and quantitative phytochemical screening, DPPH in vitro antioxidant assay, FRAP assay, total phenolic content, hydrogen peroxide radical scavenging and antibacterial bioassay. The qualitative phytochemical screening revealed the presence of flavonoids, tannins, steroids, saponins, phenols and alkaloids. Then the quantitative phytochemical screening revealed alkaloids having the highest concentration at (80.33±10.20), saponins at (53.00±2.24), phenols at (25.40±1.23), tannins at (19.33±1.32), flavonoids at (17.33±1.53), and the lowest is steroids at (10.20±0.60). The result from the DPPH assay, the FRAP assay, total phenolic content and the hydrogen radical scavenging reveals that at various concentrations comparing the extract with the standard drug, the phyllantus amarus possesses antioxidant activity. Phyllantus amarus exhibited an antibacterial activity against the following bacteria (staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, streptococci spp, klepsiella pneumoniea)