Evaluation of antidermatophytic activity of Ranunculus sceleratus and Pongamia pinnata available in North Eastern Region of India

To investigate the in vitro antifungal activity of Ranunculus sceleratus (R. sceleratus) and Pongamia pinnata (P. pinnata), collected from North East India. Chloroform, Methanol and Water extracts of the plants were evaluated for anti-ringworm activity against five strains of dermatophytes viz., Trichophyton rubrum (T. rubrum), Trichophyton mentagrophytes (T. mentagrophytes), Trichophyton tonsurans (T. tonsurans), Microsporum gypseum (M. gypseum) and Microsporum fulvum (M. fulvum). Agar well diffusion method was used to determine the inhibition zone of the different extracts. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of the extracts were determined by broth macro dilution method. When compared, the chloroform extracts of both the plants were found to be highly active against all the tested fungi followed by the methanol extract. The water extract showed the least activity. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the extracts was ranging from 1.25–10.00 mg/mL for chloroform and methanol extracts and greater that 10 mg/mL for the water extracts. The results obtained from the experiments suggest the anti-dermatophytic nature of the plants.