EXPLORING THE THERAPEUTIC EFFICACY OF CUMIN EXTRACT AGAINST UTI-CAUSING PATHOGENS

Abstract

In recent years, treatment of urinary tract infection has become increasingly challenging due to the prevalence of antimicrobial resistance patterns in the UTI causing pathogens. Plant extracts could be used to increase the efficiency of the conventional antibiotics without increasing antibiotics doses due to the presence of bioactive compounds. The current study has explored the potential of cumin seed extract to inhibit the growth of UTI pathogens. The potential was assessed using solvent including methanol, ethanol, acetone and water at different duration including 24, 48 and 72 hours for each extract. The pathogens included Escherichia coli, Proteus vulgaris, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Staphylococcus aureus. It was observed that the cumin seed extract exhibited antimicrobial activity against all tested pathogens. Results demonstrates that methanol extracts exhibited stronger antimicrobial potential with the highest zones of inhibition observed for P. vulgaris and E. coli (19mm), K. pneumoniae (18mm)  and S. aureus (15mm). Ethanol extracts also exhibited significant antimicrobial potential particularly against K. pneumoniae (18mm) and E. coli (17mm). Acetone and distilled water showed comparatively lower activity. The results proved that the cumin seed extract could be used as a potential source of antimicrobial agent, suggesting a promising compound for healthcare applications, especially antimicrobial resistance.