Evaluation of anti-mycobacterial activity of garlic (Allium sativum) against clinical isolates of non-MDR and MDR Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Tuberculosis (TB) continues to be the disease of public health problem [1]. Emergence of multi-drug resistant (MDR) and extensively drug resistant (XDR) TB throughout the developing world is very disturbing in the present scenario of TB management [2]. Therefore there is an urgent need to develop alternative anti-TB agents. Garlic (Allium sativum) has been shown to possess antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties [3]. We evaluated garlic for its antibacterial activity against non-MDR and MDR strains of TB. Ethanolic extract of garlic was prepared by maceration method and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was performed by using 7H9 middle brook broth dilution technique to evaluate its anti-mycobacterial activity against non-MDR (n=5) and MDR (n=15) strains of MTB. All the test organisms were inhibited by the garlic at MIC range of 1.0–3.0mg/ml. The results of present study support the use of garlic extract as supplement against TB along with conventional anti-TB drugs. Therefore, complementary and substitute medicines practices with plant extracts including garlic as a means of decreasing the burden of drug resistance and reducing the cost of management of diseases would be of public health importance.

Acknowledgments: We are grateful to University of Health Sciences for providing finances for this research project and special thanks to Dr. Barakat Hussain, Dr. Sidrah Saleem and Mr. Faisal Nadeem, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, Pakistan.

References: [1] WHO Report 2008. [cited 06–04–09]; Available from: URL: http://www.who.int/tb/publications/global_report/2008/en/index.html

[2] Granich, R.M. et al. (2005) JAMA 293:2732–2739.

[3] Iwalokun, B.A. et al. (2004)J. Med. Food. 7:327–333.