Evaluating the Total Phenolic, Protein Contents, Antioxidant and Pharmacological Effects of Cynodon dactylon Extracts Against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus

Abstract

Abstract The study was aimed to characterize the antioxidant and anti-microbial activities of Cynodon dactylon with special reference on its precise biochemical analysis. Physiological analysis that total carotenoids content (0.3884 ± 0.0172 mg/g), total chlorophyll content (6.1460 ± 0.2915 mg/g), total phenolic contents (13.4703 ± 0.1494 mg/g), chlorophyll a (3.7708 ± 0.1528 mg/g, catalase (CAT) contents (40.2844 ± 0.1515 units/mg), total anthocyanin contents (5.0166 ± 0.2966 g–1 FW) total soluble proteins (2.9916 ± 0.1734 mg/g) and total flavonoids content (TFC) (4.7863 ± 0.0442 μg/g) was found higher in the leaves of the Cynodon dactylon whereas, chlorophyll b (2.4881 ± 0.1326 mg/g) was found higher in the stem of Cynodon dactylon, while, peroxidase (POD) contents (81.8763 ± 4.6609 units/mg) and superoxidase dismutase (SOD) activity (80.4346 ± 5.9367 units/mg) was investigated higher in roots of Cynodon dactylon. The anti-microbial activity of Cynodon dactylon extracts was performed using a good diffusion technique against two microbial strains. Among all the plant extracts, the methanolic extracts showed a maximum inhibition zone (26.87 mm) against anti-bacterial strain Escherichia coli whereas n-hexane extract showed a maximum inhibition zone (17.88 mm) against anti-fungal strain Candida albicans. This study reported the antimicrobial activity of Cynodon dactylon against some common pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Candida albicans, which are highly associated with nosocomial infection. From the given results it is concluded that Cynodon dactylon could be exploited in pharmacology due to its antioxidant and anti-microbial properties.