Antibacterial Activity of Cinnamomum zeylanicum methanolic Extract against Escherichia coli, Isolated from Urinary Tract Infections

Background and Objectives: Escherichia coli (E.coli) are an important pathogen in the Urinary Tract Infection (UTI). Increased use of antibiotic against E.coli infections, has created antibiotic resistance. Medical herbs with anti-microbial activity have always played an important role in traditional medicine. The purpose of this study was to investigate the antibacterial activity of methanolic extract of Cinnamomum zeylanicum against E.coli isolated from UTI in vitro. Materials and Methods: This research is a descriptive analytic study. First, samples of methanolic extract of Cinnamomum zeylanicum were prepared by maceration method. Then, its antibacterial activity against 90 isolates of E.coli from 120 samples of UTI was evaluated by well diffusion and then agar serial dilution method. Also, the MIC (Minimum Inhibitory Concentration) and MBC (Minimum Bactericidal Concentration) of essential oil were determined. Results: The diagrams, T- test were used to compare the results. The results demonstrated that the methanolic extract shows best result with ZOI greater than that of the selective antibiotics. The MIC and MBC of methanolic extract of Cinnamomum zeylanicum were 500 and 1500 μg/mg, respectively. There was no significant difference between the effects of the plant methanolic extract and the selective antibiotics on E.coli (P> 0.05). Conclusion: This study suggests that methanolic extract of Cinnamomum zeylanicum has an antibacterial activity against E.coli isolated from UTI and its effect is similar to the selective antibiotic. Further investigations into this finding and issue are recommended.