Molecules (Jan 2022)

Hibiscus Acid from <i>Hibiscus sabdariffa</i> L. Inhibits Flagellar Motility and Cell Invasion in <i>Salmonella enterica</i>

  • Ixchell Y. Sedillo-Torres,
  • Álvaro O. Hernández-Rangel,
  • Yolanda Gómez-y-Gómez,
  • Daniel Cortés-Avalos,
  • Blanca Estela García-Pérez,
  • Juan C. Villalobos-Rocha,
  • César H. Hernández-Rodríguez,
  • Luis Gerardo Zepeda-Vallejo,
  • Paulina Estrada-de los Santos,
  • María Elena Vargas-Díaz,
  • Jose Antonio Ibarra

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27030655
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 27, no. 3
p. 655

Abstract

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Extracts of Hibiscus sabdariffa L. (commonly called Rosselle or “Jamaica flower” in Mexico) have been shown to have antibiotic and antivirulence properties in several bacteria. Here, an organic extract of H. sabdariffa L. is shown to inhibit motility in Salmonella enterica serovars Typhi and Typhimurium. The compound responsible for this effect was purified and found to be the hibiscus acid. When tested, this compound also inhibited motility and reduced the secretion of both flagellin and type III secretion effectors. Purified hibiscus acid was not toxic in tissue-cultured eukaryotic cells, and it was able to reduce the invasion of Salmonella Typhimurium in epithelial cells. Initial steps to understand its mode of action showed it might affect membrane proton balance.

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