The Antibacterial Properties of Aqueous and Ethanolic Extracts of Punica granatum Seeds on Bacterial Infectious Diarrhea

Diarrhea is one of the gastrointestinal diseases which is associated with inappropriate antibiotic treatment and increased antibiotic resistance leading to problems in the health systems which varies in different societies. The present study aims to determine the antibacterial activity of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of pomegranate seeds (Punica granatum) on common gastrointestinal producing bacteria. Pomegranate seeds were harvested from Saveh city in a period of one year and were obtained between August 2015 and July 2016. After gathering, its aqueous and ethanolic extracts were prepared. The antibacterial property of aqueous and ethanolic extracts of Punica granatum seeds against 100 bacteria was considered. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of various concentrations (mg/ml) of the extracts was used as an index of antimicrobial activity. The MIC of aqueous extract vs. ethanolic was based on mg / ml were as follows: E. coli (75 vs 37.5), Shigella sonnei (37.5 vs., 18.75), Shigella flexneri (18.75 vs., 9.37), Shigella dysentery (18.75 vs., 9.37), Proteus vulgaris (18.75 vs., 9.37), Proteus mirabilis (9.37 vs., 9.37) and Citrobacter fraundii (150 vs., 75), respectively. The aqueous and ethanolic extracts had inhibitory effects on the studied bacteria, which depended on the concentration of the substances used. These inhibitory effects against each bacterium might depend on effective substances and the solvent properties. The present study suggests extracting new antimicrobial compounds by chromatography to obtain new antimicrobial agents.