International Journal of Pharmaceutical Science and Research

Authors
Rasheda Perveen, Hanif Ali, Tanzima Yeasmin

Abstract
To explore antimicrobial and insecticidal effects of ethanolic extract of Alpinia calcarata rhizome and its different fractions. Antibacterial activity test was carried out by disc diffusion method against six different pathogenic bacteria whereas insecticidal activity was evaluated by surface film activity test against Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) insect. At a concentration of 800 µg/disc, the zones of inhibition produced by the crude ethanol extract and its petroleum ether and residual fractions were ranged from 6-13 mm, whereas water fraction showed no antibacterial activity. The crude ethanol extract and water soluble fraction showed a prominent insecticidal activity against Tribolium castaneum adults after 48 h of exposure with the LD50 values of 0.709 and 0.633 mg/cm2, respectively. The residual and petroleum ether fraction did not exhibit any toxicity to Tribolium castaneum. It can be concluded that the ethanol extract of Alpinia calcarata is a potent resource to develop antimicrobial and insecticidal drugs.