Antibacterial activity of Withania somnifera against Gram-positive isolates from pus samples

BACKGROUND: Withania somnifera is an important medicinal plant that has been used in Ayurvedic and indigenous medicine since ancient times. In the view of its varied therapeutic potential, it has also been the subject of considerable modern scientific attention. Attention has been drawn to antibacterial activity of the plant and its metabolites due to the challenge on growing antibacterial resistant pathogens. AIM: To examine the antimicrobial potential of leaf extract of W. somnifera against Gram-positive cocci. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, leaf extract of W. somnifera was used to examine their antimicrobial potential against Gram-positive cocci (n = 20) from pus samples of patients admitted in Government Medical College, Haldwani. Agar well diffusion method was used by taking methanolic leaf extract of W. somnifera. RESULTS: It was observed that the methanolic leaf extract of W. somnifera was very effective in inhibiting the test pathogens including methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus spp., with an average zone of inhibition of 20.6 mm and 19.4 mm at 2 mg/ml (100 μl) concentration, respectively. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that the antimicrobial property of W. somnifera leaf supports the traditional use of the plant in therapeutic use against microbial infections.