American Civil War plant medicines inhibit growth, biofilm formation, and quorum sensing by multidrug-resistant bacteria

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Micah Dettweiler, Emory University; James T. Lyles, Emory University; Kate Nelson, Emory University; Brandon Dale, Emory University; Ryan M. Reddinger, WRAIR; Daniel V. Zurawski, WRAIR; Cassandra Leah Quave, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2019-05-22
• Publisher: Nature Research (part of Springer Nature): Fully open access journals
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2019, The Author(s).
• License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44242-y
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Scientific Reports
• ISSN: 2045-2322
• Volume: 9
• Issue: 1
• Start Page: 7692
• End Page: 7692
• Grant/Funding Information: This work was also supported by a grant from the National Institutes of Health, National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (R01 AT007052, PI: CQ); and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (R21 AI136563, PI: CQ).; This work was supported in part by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Education Program award #52006923 to Emory University.
• Keywords: TANNINS; AGENTS; EXTRACTS; NATURAL-PRODUCTS; Science & Technology; SESQUITERPENE; Multidisciplinary Sciences; ANTIBACTERIAL; Science & Technology - Other Topics
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Medicine and Surgery; Biology, Microbiology; Health Sciences, Pharmacology

Abstract

A shortage of conventional medicine during the American Civil War (1861–1865) spurred Confederate physicians to use preparations of native plants as medicines. In 1863, botanist Francis Porcher compiled a book of medicinal plants native to the southern United States, including plants used in Native American traditional medicine. In this study, we consulted Porcher’s book and collected samples from three species that were indicated for the formulation of antiseptics: Liriodendron tulipifera, Aralia spinosa, and Quercus alba. Extracts of these species were tested for the ability to inhibit growth in three species of multidrug-resistant pathogenic bacteria associated with wound infections: Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Acinetobacter baumannii. Extracts were also tested for biofilm and quorum sensing inhibition against S. aureus. Q. alba extracts inhibited growth in all three species of bacteria (IC50 64, 32, and 32 µg/mL, respectively), and inhibited biofilm formation (IC50 1 µg/mL) in S. aureus. L. tulipifera extracts inhibited biofilm formation (IC50 32 µg/mL) in S. aureus. A. spinosa extracts inhibited biofilm formation (IC50 2 µg/mL) and quorum sensing (IC50 8 µg/mL) in S. aureus. These results support that this selection of plants exhibited some antiseptic properties in the prevention and management of wound infections during the conflict.