Punica granatum(Pomegranate) Extract Is Active Against Dental Plaque

Abstract

In the present work, we studied the effect of the hydroalcoholic extract (HAE) from Punica granatum (pomegranate) fruits on dental plaque microorganisms. The study was conducted on 60 healthy patients (33 females and 27 males, with age ranging from 9 to 25 years) using fixed orthodontic appliances, and randomly distributed into 3 groups of 20 patients each. The first group (control) used distilled water, while the second and third groups used chlorhexidine (standard) and HAE as mouth-rinses, respectively. The dental plaque material was collected from each patient, before and after a 1-min mouth-rinse with 15 ml of either distilled water, chlorhexidine or HAE. In both dental plaque collections, the material was removed from patients without oral hygiene, for 24 h (no tooth brushing). Dental plaque samples were diluted in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) plated on Mueller-Hinton agar, and incubated for 48 h, at 37 degrees C. Results, expressed as the number of colony forming units per milliliter (CFU/mL), show that the HAE was very effective against dental plaque microorganisms, decreasing the CFU/ml by 84% (CFU x 10(5)), before mouth-rinse: 154.0 +/- 41.18; after mouthrinse: 25.4 +/- 7.76). While similar values were observed with chlorhexidine, used as standard and positive control (79% inhibition), only an 11% inhibition of CFU/ml was demonstrated in the distilled water group, negative control (CFU x 10(5)), before mouth-rinse: chlorhexidine, 208.7 +/- 58.81 and distilled water, 81.1 +/- 10.12; after mouth-rinse: chlorhexidine, 44.0 +/- 15.85 and distilled water, 71.9 +/- 8.68). The HAE presented also an antibacterial activity against selected microorganisms, and may be a possible alternative for the treatment of dental plaque bacteria.

Comparative study of the anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive effects of two varieties ofPunica granatum

“…Pomegranate juice and fruit extracts normalized to punicalagins and a total pomegranate tannin fraction (TPT) from the fruit have been shown to inhibit the proliferation of human cancer cells and modulate inflammatory subcellular signaling pathways (Afaq et al, 2005;Seeram et al, 2005;Adams et al, 2006). The effects of pomegranate juice and extracts on molecular and cellular mechanisms has been researched on a systemic level where benefits for cardiovascular, prostate, dental, and metabolic health have been shown in the clinical literature (Aviram et al, 2000(Aviram et al, , 2002(Aviram et al, , 2004Esmaillzadeh et al, 2006;Menezes et al, 2006;Pantuck et al, 2006).…”

The Therapeutic Potential of Pomegranate and Its Products for Prevention of Cancer

“…The only human trials examining the antibacterial properties of pomegranate extracts have focused on oral bacteria (Sastravaha et al, 2003;Menezes et al, 2006). However, several in vitro assays demonstrate its bacteriocidal activity against several highly pathogenic and sometimes antibiotic-resistant organisms.…”

Punica granatum L. protects mice against hexavalent chromium-induced genotoxicity

“…These include anti-inflammatory, antitumoral, diabetes prevention/ treatment, antiulcer, antimicrobial, antiangiogenic, immunomodulating and antioxidant activities. The medicinal properties of this fruit have been widely investigated and numerous scientific papers have corroborated with its popular use (Prashanth et al, 2001;Braga et al, 2005;Menezes et al, 2006;Vasconcelos et al, 2006;Aquil, Ahmad, 2007;Oliveira et al, 2010;Johanningsmeier, Harris, 2011).…”

“…These include anti-inflammatory, antitumoral, diabetes prevention/ treatment, antiulcer, antimicrobial, antiangiogenic, immunomodulating and antioxidant activities. The medicinal properties of this fruit have been widely investigated and numerous scientific papers have corroborated with its popular use (Prashanth et al, 2001;Braga et al, 2005;Menezes et al, 2006;Vasconcelos et al, 2006;Aquil, Ahmad, 2007;Oliveira et al, 2010;Johanningsmeier, Harris, 2011).Analyses of the antioxidant property of pomegranate have shown that this fruit is superior to other foods in terms of antioxidant effects, such as red wine, cranberries and green tea (Seeram et al, 2008). Moreover certain reports have shown considerable antioxidant activities of Punica granatum in several in vitro and in vivo experimental models (Chidambara et al, 2002;Cerda et al, 2003;Ricci et al, 2006;Bishayee et al, 2011).…”