COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE ANTIMICROBIAL AND ANTIOXIDANT PROPERTIES OF SELECTED PLANT EXTRACTS AS NATURAL PRESERVATIVES IN OINTMENT FORMULATION

Erna C. Arollado*, Leslie P. Bucog, Richelle Ann M. Manalo

ABSTRACT

Preservatives are substances added to food and pharmaceutical products to extend their shelf-life. Synthetic compounds have been widely used for such applications, however, reports demonstrated adverse effects of synthetic preservative consumption. Thus, there is a need to develop safe and cheap preservatives to avoid undesirable effects. This study aims to investigate the preservative efficacy of five plants namely Psidium guajava, Premna odorata, Mimosa pudica,
Allium sativum and Zingiber officinale, as an alternative for synthetic preservatives. Ethanolic extracts of these plants were subjected to phytochemical screening which verified the presence of sapogenins and glycosides in all plant extracts. AAS analysis confirmed that the extracts are safe, as shown by the lead and cadmium contents within the acceptable dietary intake (

Keywords: Preservatives; natural; antioxidant; antimicrobial; P. guajava.