Phytochemical analysis and antibacterial activity of Verbascum sinuatum L. aerial parts ethanolic extract against three agriculturally important crop pathogens.

Abstract

In this work, the phytochemical analysis and antibacterial activity of the ethanol extract derived from the aerial parts of Verbascum sinuatum L. collected in the Botanical Garden of Rome were presented. The phytochemical analysis evidenced 4 known secondary metabolites namely luteolin (1), verbascoside (2), aucubin (3) and ajugol (4) which have all been already reported in the species. Indeed, the antibacterial assay against the crop pathogens Pectobacterium carotovorum, Pseudomonas syringae pv tomato and Ralstonia pseudosolonacearum showed the high effectiveness of this extract in reducing their growth by about 50% after 48 h, by 70% after 24 h, by about 70% after 24 h, respectively. This effect is fully explained by the presence of these compounds which have already demonstrated high effects against other bacteria . Future research shall surely individuate their specific contributions and evaluate possible in vivo applications.