Event Website
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1MEPEEPOXKK2Uc76horw9UCdZsPXMEBON7pi0u6lJM_U/edit#slide=id.p3
Start Date
13-12-2016 11:30 AM
Description
Medicinal plants have long been used to treat many different conditions and have recently become more popular as a “re-emerging health aid” due to the rising costs of prescription drugs. The various chemicals and compounds that are beneficial to the plants themselves may potentially offer health benefits to humans as well. Antibacterial and antifungal properties are particularly applicable to human health as many diseases are the result of bacterial and fungal infections. Because plants often come into contact with bacteria and fungi (some of which could be potentially harmful), antibacterial and antifungal properties are fairly common amongst plants, albeit with varying degrees of strength amongst plants and within different parts of the plants themselves. Echinacea, ginger, uva ursi, and garlic are all known to exhibit antibacterial and/or antifungal properties. The effectiveness of each plant as an antibacterial and antifungal treatment will be measured and analyzed from diameters of the zones of inhibition generated from antibacterial assays using human pathogenic bacteria grown on TY plates and paper disks inoculated with the plant extracts. With my research, I hope to fill an information gap regarding the medicinal properties of lesser known plant species, as well as how medicinal properties vary amongst different parts of the same plant.
Antibacterial and Antifungal Properties of Medicinal Plants
Medicinal plants have long been used to treat many different conditions and have recently become more popular as a “re-emerging health aid” due to the rising costs of prescription drugs. The various chemicals and compounds that are beneficial to the plants themselves may potentially offer health benefits to humans as well. Antibacterial and antifungal properties are particularly applicable to human health as many diseases are the result of bacterial and fungal infections. Because plants often come into contact with bacteria and fungi (some of which could be potentially harmful), antibacterial and antifungal properties are fairly common amongst plants, albeit with varying degrees of strength amongst plants and within different parts of the plants themselves. Echinacea, ginger, uva ursi, and garlic are all known to exhibit antibacterial and/or antifungal properties. The effectiveness of each plant as an antibacterial and antifungal treatment will be measured and analyzed from diameters of the zones of inhibition generated from antibacterial assays using human pathogenic bacteria grown on TY plates and paper disks inoculated with the plant extracts. With my research, I hope to fill an information gap regarding the medicinal properties of lesser known plant species, as well as how medicinal properties vary amongst different parts of the same plant.
https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/honors-research-and-exhibition/2016/section-02/6
Comments
Mentor: Tatiana Kuzmenko