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Pomegranate extract inhibits Staphylococcus aureus growth and subsequent enterotoxin production.

Braga LC, Shupp JW, Cummings C, Jett M, Takahashi JA, Carmo LS, Chartone-Souza E, Nascimento AM

Departamento de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

In Brazil, pomegranate (Punica granatum L. (Punicaceae)) is widely used as a phytotherapeutic agent. This study evaluates the effect of pomegranate extract on Staphylococcus aureus FRI 722 growth and subsequent enterotoxin production. Bacterial susceptibility was determined by tube dilution method and production of enterotoxin was assessed using membrane-over-agar (MOA) plates. At a low extract concentration (0.01% v/v) bacterial growth was delayed, while a higher concentration (1% v/v) eliminated bacterial growth. Most interestingly, a 0.05% (v/v) concentration of extract was found to inhibit Staphylococcal enterotoxin (SE) A production. These data further implicate pomegranate extracts as potential antibacterial therapeutics with the added ability to inhibit enterotoxin production.

Published 13 December 2004 in J Ethnopharmacol, 96(1): 335-9.
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