Antimicrobial Activity of Medicinal Plant Extracts against Streptococcus mutans II

This study was carried out to research antimicrobial agents from medicinal plants, Pueraria thunbergiana, Sophora flavescens, Lonicera japonica, Pinellia ternata, Dictamnus dasycarpus, Paeonia lactiflora, Angelica dahurica, Spirodela polyrhiza, Cryptotympana pustulata, Pinus densiflora, Cimicifuga heracleifolia, Bupleurum falcatum, Magnolia kobus, Artemisia princeps, Houttuynia cordata, Forsythia koreana, Arctium lappa, Castanea crenata, Aster tataricus, Citrus unshiu, Gardenia jasminoides, Ledebouriella seseloides, Hovenia dulcis, Prunus sargentii. The ethanol extracts of 24 medicinal plants were tested for the antimicrobial activity against Streptococcus mutans. The extracts of Sophora flavescens, Pinus densiflora, Cimicifuga heracleifolia, Gardenia jasminoides and Ledebouriella seseloides showed antimicrobial activity against Streptococcus mutans. The extracts of Pinus densiflora and Sophora flavescens among these medical plants showed significant antimicrobial activity against Streptcoccus mutans. These results suggested that the extracts from Pinus densiflora and Sophora flavescens could be the potential source of antimicrobial agents against S. mutans.