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Review
. 2019 May 15:10:911.
doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.00911. eCollection 2019.

Antimicrobial Activity of Polyphenols and Alkaloids in Middle Eastern Plants

Leen Othman  1 , Ahmad Sleiman  2 , Roula M Abdel-Massih  2
Affiliations
Review

Antimicrobial Activity of Polyphenols and Alkaloids in Middle Eastern Plants

Leen Othman et al. Front Microbiol. .

Abstract

Antibiotic-resistant microorganisms have been an ever-growing concern over the past years. This has led researchers to direct their attention onto plants to be able to discover new possible antimicrobial compounds. The Middle East encompasses a wide spectrum of plant diversity with over 20,000 different species in habitats ranging from deserts to snow-capped mountains. Several plant secondary metabolites and their derivatives have been identified as possible antimicrobial agents. Among the secondary metabolites studied, alkaloids and polyphenols have shown strong antimicrobial activity. Polyphenols are one of the most numerous and diverse group of secondary metabolites; their antioxidant properties provide the basis for antimicrobial effects. Alkaloids provided the underlying structure for the development of several antibiotics with a diverse range of action. The ability of some plant secondary metabolites to act as resistance-modifying agents is a promising field in mitigating the spread of bacterial resistance.

Keywords: alkaloids; antimicrobial resistance; plant secondary metabolites; polyphenols; resistance-modifying agent.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Phenolic compounds and derivatives found in medicinal plants (Taiz et al., 2015).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Alkaloid skeletal structures found in medicinal plants (Evans, 2009).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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