Effects of plumbagin on antibiotic resistance in bacteria.

Plumbagin, a compound derived from the roots of Plumbago zeylanica (Chitramool) was studied for its effect on the development of antibiotic resistance using antibiotic sensitive strains of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. A delayed growth was seen when these organisms were inoculated into the antibiotic (streptomycin/rifampicin) medium, due to development of resistance in some of the cells. However, the growth was completely prevented when the bacteria were grown in the medium containing antibiotic and plumbagin together, and this was attributed to prevention of development of antibiotic resistant cells.