Antimicrobial effect of different types of honey derived from Iraqi flora on clinical strains of Proteus mirabilis, Proteus vulgaris and Klebsiella pneumonia

Abstract

The emergence of industrial antibiotics has been a leap in the treatment of infectious diseases and the elimination of germs but led to the development of resistance and the emergence of multi-drug resistant strains, so return to natural products is the best solution. Honey is one of the products that have been used since ancient times as food and treatment for many diseases. The effectiveness of Iraqi honey has not been studied previously. Therefore, this study can be a general idea about the effectiveness of Iraqi honey. Samples were collected from geographically diverse areas and were assay against isolated bacteria from a respiratory infection (RTIs), and urinary tract infections (UTIs) compared with antibiotics. Antimicrobial activity of eight Iraqi honey types was studied against five multi-drug resistant isolates of K. pneumonia that, have been isolated from respiratory tract infection and five multi-drug resistant clinical isolates of each P. mirabilis, and P. vulgaris, which have been isolated from urinary tract infection, and two reference strains (E. coli ATCC 10536, and K. pneumonia ATCC 10031). By using standard methods, different concentrations of honey were tested against each type of microorganism to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) or minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC). The minimum inhibitory concentration of Iraqi honey samples ranged from 12.5% to 25% (w/v) for P. mirabilis and P. vulgar -is, and 6.25% to 25% (w/v) for references strains. Most samples of Iraqi honey had little effectiveness against these strains compared to the control of honey and antibiotic. The MICs of Iraqi honey samples against Klebsiella strains were not lower than 25% (w/v) and no bactericidal activity was seen. Honey as a medicinal agent must have a strong and rapid antibacterial activity against bacteria resistant to antibiotics, thus it’s necessary to evaluate the characteristics of different kinds of honey from diverse geographical regions more deeply.