Methanol and n-Hexane Extracts of Aerial Parts of Leutea cupularis

Considering the importanceof plant evaluation for obtaining substances with anti-bacterial effects, the anti-microbial activity of Leuteacupularis was investigated in this study. Plant samples were collected at the end of summer 2014 from a 2800-meter altitude of Rendan village in Tehran. The materials in aerial parts of the plant were extracted by soaking them in methanol. After that, the nonpolar material was extracted using n-hexane. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of aerial parts of the plantwere identified by broth micro-dilution method. Plant extracts were evaluated against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa,Klebsiella pneumonia and Bacillus cereus.Cefixime was used as the standard antibiotic. Comparing the anti-bacterial results of the two samples indicated that the hexane extract has the best effect against Bacillus cereus(MIC=0.25mg/ml),Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus (MIC = 1 mg/ml), and Klebsiella pneumonia (MIC = 16 mg/ml), respectively. Pseudomonas aeruginosa was identified as the most resistant bacterium against the two extracts (MIC = 64 mg/ml). The results of methanol extract evaluation showed that MIC forE.coli, St.epidermidis,St. aureus, K.pneumonia and B.cereus was 16mg/mlwhereas64mg/mlfor P. aeruginosa. Therefore, it can be concluded that the hexane extract has better anti-bacterial effects compared to methanol one.