EVALUATION OF THE ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITIES OF FERULA HERMONIS (BOISS.)

Ferula hermonis of the genus Ferula belongs to the family Umbelliferae. The genus Ferula has been extensively studied, due to the high occurrence of active ingredients in it, and which made many species of it be used in traditional medicine. Ferula hermonis Boiss. was not among the investigated species, even though it has a strong reputation as an aphrodisiac and as a general stimulant. This study focuses, first on the composition of the volatile oil and its active elements through the analysis by gas chromatography: the volatile oil of flowering tops, roots and seed was found to be very rich, but with a predominance of α-pinene, 38%, 31% and 51.3% respectively. The effectiveness of the Ferula hermonis extracts against some pathogenic germs was also evaluated, and then compared to that of usual antibiotic discs. Results showed resin extract of Ferula hermonis to be highly effective against gram-negative bacteria while root’s oil extract to be highly effective against gram-positive bacteria. 50µl/ml of roots oil extract would inhibit within 10 minutes 6000 germs of Staphylococcus aureus; and 10µl/ml would inhibit within 1 hour 16000 germs of Streptococcus fecalis. 10µl/ml of Resin extract would inhibit 2400 germs of Salmonella typhi within 1 hour, and within 24 hours 50µl/ml and 10µl/ml of resin extract would inhibit respectively 15300 germs of Escherichia coli and 3500 germs of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In general Ferula hermonis was found to be strongly bactericidal and its activity strongly exceeded that of usual antibiotic discs.