ANTI-BACTERIAL AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITIES OF "YAHOM-NAVAKOT" EXTRACTS, A THAI TRADITIONAL CONCOCTION FOR REDUCING FEVER

Abstract

“Yahom-Navakot” (YN) is a Thai herbal remedy for treating fatigue and post-fever maladies (“Lom Plai Khai”). YN is composed of 55 plant materials based on a Thai essential medicines list. Extracts obtained by maceration with 95% ethanol (YNE) and water decoction (YNW) were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Anti-bacterial activities of YNE and YNW were based on minimal inhibitory and minimum bactericidal concentrations against a set of four Gram-positive and four Gram-negative bacteria, showing YNE was capable of inhibiting Gram-positive (all but one) but not Gram-negative bacteria while YNW did not exhibit any bactericidal activity. Anti-inflammatory activities of YNE and YNW were examined by the measuring of nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha production in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 cell line, with YNE exhibiting greater anti-inflammatory potency than YNW. YNE contained greater relative amounts of borneol, β-caryophyllene, 5-α-cholestane, eugenol, fatty acids, and β-selinene compared to YNW, many of which have proven anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory activities, providing a possible explanation for YNE superior anti-inflammatory property. These findings should assist in furthering studies of bioactive components in YN as possible adjuvant treatments of bacterial infections and inflammation processes.