Evaluation of Antibacterial Activity of Aqueous, Ethanolic and Methanolic Extracts Areca Nut Fruit on Selected Bacteria.

Today, the tendency to use of natural preservatives to increase food security has expanded. In the present study, antibacterial effects of Areca Nut fruit extracts were evaluated against , , , and bacteria using agar disc diffusion technique. Methanol, ethanol, and water were used as solvents for extraction by maceration method, and extracts were analyzed by GC-MS. The antibacterial activity was evaluated using microtiter broth dilution method to determine minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). Results revealed that all ATCC strains were significantly inhibited by ethanolic and methanolic extracts. Escherichia coli produced a significantly larger zone of inhibition for Gentamicin (35 ± 0.65 mm) and Penicillin (25 mm ± 0.56), while produced smaller zone of inhibition for Gentamicin (20 ± 0.87 mm) and Penicillin (15 ± 0.87 mm). Also, methanolic extract had considerable antibacterial activity with MIC value of 1.56 mg/mL against . All of extracts were used to evaluate antibacterial effects in prepared cake, and as a result, all pathogenies were the most sensitive by methanolic extract in 100 mg/L of concentration except that were more sensitive by ethanolic extract. In conclusion, the Areca Nut fruit extracts may be used as a natural preservative in food industries. Future studies should focus on the effect of Areca Nut fruit extracts in bakery and drinking industries.