A review of the antimicrobial properties of three selected underutilized fruits of Malaysia

• Published in: International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Clinical Research
• Main Author: Aziz N.A.
• Format: Review
• Language: English
• Published: International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Clinical Research 2016
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84989179355&partnerID=40&md5=6c05f710797aa2bcd95fb17923a6afcb

Fruits have many important biological effects such as antioxidant, antitumor, antimutagenic and antimicrobial properties1. This advantage also applies to the Malaysian fruits including underutilized fruits. Underutilized fruits are fruits that are rarely eaten, unknown and unfamiliar because some of the species only exist at a certain region2. Antibiotic resistance can be minimized by using new compounds that are not based on the existing synthetic antimicrobial agents3. Thus, natural antimicrobials seem to be the most promising answer to many of the increasing concerns regarding antibiotic resistance and could yield better results than antimicrobials from the combinatorial chemistry and other synthetic procedures4. This review paper emphasizes the antimicrobial characteristics possessed by three underutilized fruits namely Phyllanthus acidus (P. acidus), Averrhoa bilimbi (A. bilimbi) and Passiflora edulis (P. edulis) so that they can be used as natural antibiotic drugs and natural preservatives in processed foods. These three fruits are commonly known as “cermai”, “belimbing buluh” and “markisa” respectively in Malaysia. © 2016, International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Clinical Research. All rights reserved.