Exploration of Antimicrobial, Antibiofilm and Antiquorum Sensing Activity of the Himalayan Yellow Raspberry (Rubus ellipticus) against Clinical Isolates of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus

Background: Management of ever growing multidrug resistant (MDR) bacteria becomes one of the biggest threats to public health worldwide. The situation is worsening due to lack of new generation antimicrobials in the arsenal of the clinicians. Development of new alternatives to the conventional antimicrobial agents is the need of the hour to control the menace of AMR. Plants based products are attractive alternatives with proven efficacy but needs scientific investigation to explore their potential antimicrobial, antibiofilm and antiquorum sensing activities against major bacterial pathogens of human and animals. The present study was conducted to explore the antimicrobial, antibiofilm and antiquorum sensing activity of aqueous and methanol extracts of leaf, flower, fruit and stem of the Himalayan yellow raspberry (Rubus ellipticus) against clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Methods: E. coli and S. aureus were isolated and identified from diarrhoeic pigs and poultry and mastitic milk of cattle of Mizoram, respectively. Leaf, flower, fruit and stem/bark of R. ellipticus were collected from Mizoram and extracted by methanol and aqueous solvents. The antimicrobial activity and MIC was determined by well diffusion method and 96 wells microtiter plate method, respectively. Antibiofilm activity of plant extracts was determined in 96 well tissue culture plate. Antiquorum sensing activity was determined by disc diffusion method. Result: Methanol leaf extract exhibited antimicrobial activity against S. aureus with 19 mm and 7 mm zone of inhibition at 200 mg/mL and 12.5 mg/mL, respectively. Methanol fruit extract also showed antimicrobial activity against S. aureus only. Highest and lowest activities were observed at 200 mg/mL and 25 mg/mL concentrations with 15 mm and 7 mm zone of inhibition, respectively. No antimicrobial activities by either of the extracts were observed against E. coli isolates. The MIC of R. ellipticus methanol leaf and fruit extracts against S. aureus was 0.203125 mg/mL and 0.8125 mg/mL, respectively. The methanol leaf (86.60%) and stem (85.60%) extracts of R. ellipticus showed significant antibiofilm activity against S. aureus isolates, whereas methanol fruit (89.20%) extracts exhibited antibiofilm activity against E. coli isolates at the concentration of 0.05 mg/mL. Significant antiquorum sensing (QS) activities was exhibited by the methanol leaf extract of R. ellipticus at 200 mg/mL concentration against E. coli. This is the first ever report on antibiofilm and anti QS activities of the R. ellipticus plant extracts against E. coli and S. aureus bacteria.

Rubus ellipticus (yellow Himalayan raspberry).

The invasiveness of the thorny shrub R. ellipticus has been most thoroughly documented on the island of Hawaii. Since the first report of its escape from cultivation in 1961, this species has become established in mid-elevation forest and pastureland, forming tall, dense thickets. Seeds are sufficiently viable following passage through the digestive systems of birds and mammals to readily germinate in pastureland and undisturbed forest sites where they are deposited. Several introduced frugivorous birds and feral mammals, are capable of dissemination of seeds via ingestion of the succulent fruit and birds in particular, are able to carry seeds to adjacent sites. It can also spread by suckers and resprouts vigorously after fire. The ability to colonize undisturbed native forests and displace native species is cause for alarm among resource managers of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and other natural reserves of Hawaii, comprised of highly ecologically sensitive systems. It has been listed as one of the world's 100 worst invasive alien species (Lower et al., 2000), and is a prohibited species in South Africa (NEMBA Category 1a).

Adsorptive Removal of Pb(II), Cu(II) and Cd(II) Ions onto Rubus ellipticus as Low-Cost Biosorbent

In the present study, removal efficiency (%) of Rubus ellipticus leaves (REL) as an adsorbent for the removal of Pb(II), Cu(II) and Cd(II) ions was investigated. Different parameters i.e., pH, contact time, temperature, adsorbent dose and initial metal ion concentration were investigated to obtain the optimum adsorption efficiency. At pH 4, a maximum adsorption was 84.6, 80.2 and 74.5 % for Pb(II), Cu(II) and Cd(II) ions, respectively. The maximum adsorption of all the three metal ions obtained at contact time (75 min), initial metal ion concentration (10 mg/L), temperature (25 ºC) and adsorbent dose (5.0 g). The equilibrium adsorption of Pb(II), Cu(II) and Cd(II) ions at different temperature was described by Langmuir, Freundlich and Temkin isotherms. The equilibrium data fitted well the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. Thermodynamic parameters like Gibb′s free energy (ΔGº), enthalpy (ΔHº) and entropy (ΔSº) were also calculated. The calculated parameters indicated that adsorption of Pb(II), Cu(II) and Cd(II) ions onto Rubus ellipticus leaves (REL) was spontaneous (ΔGº < 0), endothermic (ΔGº > 0). The feasibility of the process was evident from the positive value of ΔSº.