IN VITRO ANTIOXIDANT AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF EXTRACTS OF BULGARIAN MALVA SYLVESTRIS L.
MIHAYLOVA D.1, POPOVA A.2*, DENKOVA R., ALEXIEVA I.1, KRASTANOV A.2
1-Department of Biotechnology, University of Food Technologies, 26 Maritza Blvd., Plovdiv, Bulgaria
2-Department of Catering and Tourism, University of Food Technologies, 26 Maritza Blvd., Plovdiv, Bulgaria
*Corresponding author: popova_aneta@abv.bg
Keywords: Malva sylvestris; antimicrobial; antioxidant activity; total polyphenolics
Abstract: The widespread use of culinary plants for health purposes has increased dramatically due to their great importance to a balanced diet. In this study, different extracts of fresh Malva sylvestris leaves and flowers were investigated for their level of total phenolics, antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive (Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538-P), Gram-negative (Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Escherichia coli ATCC 8739, Salmonella sp. (clinical isolate), Proteus vulgaris J) bacteria, molds (Aspergillus niger, Penicillium sp., Rhizopus sp.) and yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisiae); and their antioxidant activities using various methodologies: ABTS, DPPH, FRAP, and CUPRAC assays. The total phenolic content was established to be 2.35 ± 0.01 and 0.83 ± 0.05 mg GAE/g fresh plant weight in the decoction extracts of leaves and flowers, respectively. The flowers were found to be more active toward pathogenic microorganisms. The present study revealed that the consumption of this plant would exert several beneficial effects by virtue of their antioxidant and antimicrobial activities.