Journal of Environmental Biology

Inhibitory effects of seaweed extracts on the growth of the

vaginal bacterium Gardnerella vaginalis 

Yu-Mi Ha¹, Jae-Suk Choi¹, Bo-Bae Lee¹, Hye Eun Moon¹, Kwang Keun Cho² and In Soon Choi^1,3*

¹RIS Center, Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation, Silla University, Busan 617-736, Republic of Korea

²Department of Animal Resources Technology, Gyeongnam National University of Science and Technology, 150 Chilam-dong,

Jinju, Gyeongnam, 660-758, Republic of Korea

³Department of Biological Science, Silla University, Busan 617-736, Republic of Korea

*Corresponding Author E-mail: ischoi101@korea.com

Publication Data

Paper received:

29 April 2013

Revised received:

06 August 2013

Accepted:

16 August 2013

Abstract

Of 44 species of seaweed screened for potential anti-Gardnerella vaginalis activity, 27 (61.4%) showed antimicrobial activity by the agar disk-diffusion method. Among them, the strongest activities against the pathogen were exhibited by Chlorophyta, with Ulva pertusa producing an 11.3-mm zone of inhibition at 5 mg disk^-1. The MIC values of U. pertusa extracts against both G. vaginalis KCTC 5096 and KCTC 5097, the main cause of vaginosis, were 312 ?g ml^-1, while the MIC values against both Candida albicans KCTC 7270 and KCTC 7965, the main cause of candidiasis, were 2.5 mg ml^-1. Against Lactobacillus gasseri KCTC 3173 and Lactobacillus jensenii KCTC 5194, members of the normal vaginal microflora, no inhibitory effect was seen even at 10 mg ml^-1. To identify the primary active compounds, a U. pertusa powder was successively fractionated according to polarity, and the main active agents against G. vaginalis KCTC 5096 were determined to be nitrogenous compounds (156 ?g ml^-1 of the MIC value). According to these results, it was suggested that extracts of the seaweed U. pertusa are valuable for the development of natural therapeutic agents for treating women with bacterial vaginosis. ? 

 Key words

Antimicrobial activity, Bacterial vaginosis, Gardnerella vaginalis, Ulva pertusa, Seaweed 

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