Biological activities and phytochemical prospection of plant extracts of Myrsine Umbellata mart

Abstract

Myrsine umbellata is a Brazilian native species from the Primulaceae family, popularly known as “Capororocão.” Considering that plants have been used to treat various illnesses, explaining interest in research with Brazilian native species in the search for plant bioactives with biological potential that can act on the control of pathogenic microorganisms. Thus, the present study aimed to identify the phytochemical compounds of the leaves of the native species M. umbellata, as well as to evaluate the antimicrobial potential of Methanolic (ME), Acetonic (AE), Ethanolic (EE), and Hexanic (HE) plant extracts against bacteria of clinical and veterinary importance. The presence of secondary metabolites was analyzed by observing color changes or precipitate formation reactions, and the antimicrobial activity was determined by broth microdilution methodology. Through phytochemical prospecting, the presence of nine classes of metabolites was detected: tannins, saponins, free steroids, alkaloids, anthocyanins, anthocyanidins, flavones, flavonoids, and flavanonols. The extracts exhibited antimicrobial activity against all tested strains. ME showed the best MIC results for the standard strains. The most susceptible strains were gram-positive: Staphylococcus epidermidis and Enterococcus faecalis and gram-negative: Salmonella enterica Typhimurium, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus mirabilis besides the yeast Candida albicans. The results indicate that the species M. umbellata shows the potential for isolating natural bioactives and the potential development of products such as non-synthetic antimicrobials.