Investigation of antimicrobial activity of Punica granatum L. fruit peel ash used for protection against skin infections as folk remedies especially after male circumcision

Abstract

Antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant, antitumor, antiviral, antimalarial and antimutagenic effects of Punica granatum (PG) have already been supported by different studies. PGhas a rich history of traditional use in medicine. For centuries, the barks, leaves, flowers, fruits and seeds of this plant have been used to heal several diseases. However, in South Anatolia, Turkey, some people employ the ashes of PG fruit peel as a protective against skin infections, especially after male circumcision. There have been no reports about the antimicrobial activity of PG fruit peel ash as far as the current literature is concerned. The aim of this study was to investigate the antimicrobial activity of ashes of PG fruit peels. The ethanol and a solvent cocktail (dH2O:ethanol:methanol:aceton:CH2Cl2 (1:2.5:2.5:2:2)) extracts of PG fruit peel and peel ashes were tested against Candida albicans ATCC 26555, Escherichia coli ETEC LM 63083, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella entericaSerotype Typhimirium SL 1344 and Shigella flexneri. The results indicated that both PGfruit peel and peel ashes showed antimicrobial activity against all microorganisms tested. In conclusion, since PG fruit peel ashes showed promising degrees of antimicrobial activity against the tested microorganisms, these preliminary data should be supported by further large-scale studies. Key words: Punica granatum, pomegranate, fruit peel ash, antimicrobial activity, disc diffusion test, male circumcision.