Recent advances in antibacterial, antiprotozoal and antifungal trends of eurycoma longifolia: A review of therapeutic implications and future prospects

• Published in: Current Drug Targets
• Main Author: Ei Thu H.; Hussain Z.; Mohamed I.N.; Shuid A.N.
• Format: Review
• Language: English
• Published: Bentham Science Publishers B.V. 2018
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85054091313&doi=10.2174%2f1389450119666180219123815&partnerID=40&md5=bd6934480aa0b4b5ccccec280cefce81

Background: Eurycoma longifolia (E. longifolia) has gained widespread recognition due to its versatile pharmacological activities including aphrodisiac, anticancer, antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anxiolytic, anti-diabetic, ergogenic, insecticidal, anti-rheumatism, bone protection, and anti-ulcer effects. Objective: This review was aimed to critically overview the literature and summarizes the antibacterial, antiprotozoal, and antifungal trends of E. longifolia and its medicinally active components. Results: Besides its well-documented safety, efficacy, and tolerability, a plethora of in vitro, in vivo, and human clinical studies has evidenced the antimicrobial efficacy of E. longifolia and its bioactive constituents. Phytochemical screening of various types of extracts (methanolic, ethyl acetate, and n-butanolic) from different parts (roots, stem, and leaves) of E. longifolia displayed a dose-dependent antibacterial, antiprotozoal, and antifungal responses. Comparative analysis revealed that the root extract of E. longifolia exhibited the highest antimicrobial efficacy compared to other parts of the plant. Bioactivity-guided fractionation identified that among all of the medicinal compounds iso-lated/extracted from different parts of E. longifolia, eurycomanone displayed the strongest antibacterial, antiprotozoal and antifungal activities. Conclusion: Based on the critical analysis of the literature, we identified that E. longifolia exhibits promising antibacterial, antiprotozoal, and antifungal efficacies against various pathogenic microbes and thus can be considered as a potential complementary and alternative antimicrobial therapy. © 2018 Bentham Science Publishers.