Abstract

EVALUATION OF NATURAL COMPOUNDS IN ANTIMICROBIAL DRUG DISCOVERY

Rubal Rathi*, Dr. Anuj Kumar Sharma and V. M. Patil

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Abstract

In the recent years research efforts are increasing towards use of plants as sources of drugs. Ethnopharmacologists, botanists, microbiologists, and natural-products chemists are working towards identification of phytochemicals and “leads” which can be of use to develop newer molecules for the treatment of infectious or non-infectious diseases. Among the currently available antimicrobial therapeutics for the treatment of infectious diseases very few are from natural sources. Plants are rich in a wide variety of secondary metabolites, such as tannins, terpenoids, alkaloids, and flavonoids, and these have been evaluated to demonstrate their antimicrobial properties. This review summarizes the current status of investigation of various antimicrobial agents from natural sources. The structure and antimicrobial properties of phytochemicals are also included.

Keywords: Antimicrobial agents, Natural compounds, Phytoconstituents, Drug discovery.