Evaluation the bioactivities of some extracts of Cistus laurifolius

Some Cistus species (Cistaceae) can be found in Turkey; five of them have been identified (1). The leaves of Cistus species have been used against high fever, rheumatic pain, peptic ulcer, stomachache and urinary inflammations in Turkish folk medicine (2,3). For Cistus some biological effects are reported, including antimicrobial, antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-Helicobacter pylori, antiulcer, analgesic, antioxidant, antihepatotoxic, antiaggregant, and anticoagulant activity. In the present study, ethanol, hexane, chloroform, butanol, and water extracts of C. laurifolius L. were screened for their in vitro antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral activity. Antibacterial and antifungal activities were tested by the microdilution method against both, standard and isolated strains, of gram negative (Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus mirabilis, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii) and gram positive (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis) bacteria, as well as fungi (Candida albicans, C. parapsilosis). Antiviral activities of these extracts were tested against Herpes simplex virus Type-1 (HSV-1) and Parainfluenza-3 virus (PI-3) by using Madin-Darby Bovine Kidney and Vero cell lines. All extracts (32–64µg mL-1) exerted strong antimicrobial activity against isolated gram-negative strains of E. coli which are close to effects with the control antibiotic ampicilline (MIC; 64µg mL^-1). The hexane extract (CPE of 32–8µg mL^-1) had remarkable antiviral activity against PI-3.

References: 1. Davis PH (1998) Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands. Edinburgh.

2. Yeşilada E et al. (1995)J Ethnopharmacol 46: 133–52.

3. Honda G et al. (1996)J Ethnopharmacol 53: 75–87.