Herbal drugs – an alternative to antibiotics in controlling human skin infection

Abstract

Herbs have great potential to cure different kinds of skin diseases. The administration of herbs in combination with other therapeutic drugs raises the chances of potential pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic herb-drug interactions. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the major causative organism for skin infection, is a prime problem. It is a ubiquitous Gram-negative and environmental bacteria, which affect immune compromised patients, thus reflecting it’s opportunistic nature. P. aeruginosa infections vary in severity from mild to fatal. Herbal products prove to be more beneficial than allopathic medicines as they show very less to no side effects. The traditional methods have used herbal products extensively in the past for treating many diseases. The major herbal products taken under this study are Lawsonia inermis (henna), Camellia sinensis (green tea), and Coriandrum sativum (coriander). These herbal products are chosen due to their prominent antibacterial properties. Another interesting technology, quorum sensing (QS) is a system used by bacteria to synchronize genetics in agreement with population density by employing signal fragments. This mechanism plays an important role commonly used by pathogens in the infection and disease progression through biofilm formation. The combinatorial study of QS with the herbal extracts can be explored for different biosensor developments and these can restructure the detection methods.