Evaluation of the In vitro Bioactivities of Mahaleb Cherry (Prunus mahaleb L.)

The mahaleb cherry (Prunus mahaleb L.), a wild member of the Rosaceae family, is an important rootstock for cherry and sour cherry cultivars. Besides horticultural importance, all parts of the plant, specifically the seeds and fruits have been used to give flavor and taste to a variety of its cousins in Mediterranean countries for centuries. The seeds of mahaleb are an important industrial crop in Turkey; moreover, folkloric usage of the other parts of the plant has also been recorded. In the present study, methanol and n-hexane extracts from different parts of the mahaleb cherry including the flower, leaves, branches, fruits, fruit stalk, seeds and seed coat were screened for in-vitro antibacterial, antifungal and radical scavenging activity using the DPPH method. Standard strains of E. coli, P. aeruginosa, P. mirabilis, K. pneumoniae, A. baumannii, S. aureus, E. faecalis and B. subtilis with their pathogens from clinical isolates as well as fungi (C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, C. tropicalis and C. krusei) were used to determine the antimicrobial activity. All extracts showed antibacterial activity against gram-positive standard bacteria with concentrations between 16-64 mu g mL(-1) and against gram-negative bacteria (8-64 mu g mL(-1)). Additionally, the extracts demonstrated antifungal activity at concentrations between 16-64 mu g mL(-1). The minimal inhibition concentration (MIC) value of the extracts against all gram-positive and gram-negative isolated strains was 250 mu g mL(-1) excluding B. subtilis (MIC: 64 mu g mL(-1)). As for antifungal activity, all methanol and n-hexane extracts were found to inhibit C. krusei, with a MIC value of 64 mu g mL(-1), which is better than the control fluconazole (64 mu g mL(-1)). Methanol extracts of mahaleb had better antioxidant activity than all n-hexane extracts. The methanol extract of fruit samples (Mfr) displayed better antioxidant activity (86.25 +/- 0.12) than the reference BHA solution (83.633 +/- 0.22) at all concentrations except for 100 mu g mL(-1). Antioxidant levels of methanol extracts from mahaleb seed kernel (Msk), leaves (Ml), branches (Mb) and fruit stalks followed the Mfr samples. The strong antimicrobial, antifungal and antioxidant activities of the mahaleb plant indicate that in the future, it may be important for clinical nutrition and the food and pharmaceutical industries.