Investigation of microbial contamination of some dry medicinal plants in Yazd herbal shops

Abstract

Background : The use of medicinal herbs for treatment has a long history around the world. Medicinal plants may be contaminated by many microorganisms. Therefore, the evaluation of the quality of the microbial load of medicinal plants is necessary due to the importance of these plants. The aim of this study was to Investigation of microbial contamination of some dry medicinal plants in Yazd herbal shops. method: In this study 35 samples of dried medicinal plants included: Zataria multiflora, Mentha spicata, Melissa officinalis, Borago officinalis, Valeriana wallichii, Cotoneaster kotschyi, Alhagi maurorum samples were collected randomly from different sources of Yazd city and And their microbial load was investigated. In order to determine the bacterial and fungal contamination of these plants, the purple method was used with specific culture medium. findings: The results showed that the highest and lowest microbial contamination in medicinal herbs was related to Borago officinalis and Valeriana wallichii. According to the results obtained from medicinal plants, Mentha spicata has the highest number of yeast and Cotoneaster kotschyi, with the least number of yeast. The pathogenic bacteria of Salmonella and Staphylococcus aureus were not detected in the plants. Conclusion: By identifying the microbial contamination of the herbs, it is possible to use the necessary precautions.

Keywords

• microbial contamination
• medicinal plant
• dry medicinal plant