%0 Journal Article
%T Antibiotic Activity of Herbal Plants
%A M. S. Wani
%A Prof. (Dr). S. R. Parakh
%A Prof.Satish A. Polshettiwar
%A V.V.Chopade
%J Pharmaceutical Reviews
%D 2007
%I 
%X Long before mankind discovered the existence of microbes, the idea that certain plants had healing potential, indeed, that they contained what we would currently characterize as antimicrobial principles, was well accepted. Since antiquity, man has used plants to treat common infectious diseases and some of these traditional medicines are still included as part of the habitual treatment of various maladies. For example, the use of cranberry juice (Vaccinium macrocarpon) to treat urinary tract infections is reported in different manuals of phytotherapy, while species such as lemon balm (Melissa of cinalis), garlic (Allium sativum) and tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia) are described as broad-spectrum antimicrobial agents. That being said, it has generally been the essential oils of these plants rather than their extracts that has been the greatest use in the treatment of infectious pathologies in the respiratory system, urinary tract, gastrointestinal and biliary systems, as well as on the skin. For example, the use of the essential oil (tea tree oil) is a common therapeutic tool to treat acne and other infectious troubles of the skin rather than their extracts.1 In the present work, we analyze the past, present and future of medicinal plants, both as potential antimicrobial crude drugs as well as a source for natural compounds that act as new anti-infection agents.
%U http://www.pharmainfo.net/reviews/antibiotic-activity-herbal-plants