Studies on antimicrobial properties of areca nut Areca catechu

Abstract

Areca nut is the seed of the Areca palm (Areca catechu). This study evaluates the antibacterial, properties of the areca nut in vitro against common bacterial pathogens. Both gram positive and gram negative bacteria were tested against areca nut extract by measuring the growth of the organisms using the spectrophotometric method. It was found that test organisms viz., Staphylococcus aureus and E. coli were susceptible to the areca nut extract and 85-90% growth inhibition was recorded. Higher inhibition was found for Staphylococcus aureus. The concentration needed for maximum inhibition of bacterial growth was found to be 50 µg/3ml for both bacteria. These results indicate that betel nut extract have significant antibacterial properties and may be a potential source of extraction bioactive compounds for use in antimicrobial preparations.