Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) is a national health priority and with failing current treatment regimens, uses of ethnobotanical therapies are being more vigorously explored. Treatment of TB using oral and inhalational administration (hawan) of a mixture of herbs (hawan samagri, HS) has been practiced in India since ages. In vitro antitubercular effect of extract of HS against H37Ra strain of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) was recently reported in an ICMR funded research project.1 Hence this study aims to document scientific data on antitubercular effect of this HS extract against clinical MTB strains.
Materials and Methods: Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against clinical MTB strains of two different ethnobotanical mixtures (HS1 and HS2) used traditionally in India for the indigenous treatment of TB was compared. Extraction of essential oil (EO) from the mixture was done by hydro distillation and chemical characterization was done by Gas Chromatography and mass Spectroscopy (GCMS). Resazurin Microtiter Assay (REMA) was done to study antitubercular MIC.
Result and Discussion: Crude essential oil (EO) extract of HS showed significant antitubercular effect in MIC range 50 - 400 µg/ml. HS1 showed lower MIC values compared to HS2. GCMS analysis of EO showed an array of bioactive compounds known to have antitubercular and other beneficial effects.
Conclusion: Scientific validation of ethnobotanical use of HS extract for antitubercular activity was obtained in this work. HS crude EO seems to be a promising natural product with potential for new drug development in the treatment of TB.
Keywords: Ethnobotanical, Antitubercular activity, Essential oil, Multi drug resistant (MDR), Resazurin microtiter assay (REMA), Gas Chromatography and mass spectroscopy (GCMS), Phytochemical, Terpenoids, Phenolics, Hawan samagri (HS).
