Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activities of Zingiber officinale (Ginger) and Alpinia officinarum (Galangal)

Abstract

The use of spices in the treatment of health problems has been a tradition in the worldsince early ages. Alpinia officinarum Hance (galangal) and Zingiber officinale Roscoe(ginger) are aromatic plants, enriched with bioactive compounds providing the usage fortheir therapeutic properties. In this study, the ethanol and water (ultra-pure) extracts ofgalangal and ginger are used to determine the antimicrobial and antioxidant properties.Antioxidant effect was evaluated based on total antioxidant status performed by automated colorimetric measurement method and DPPH free radicals scavenging effects doneby spectrophotometric method; whilst antimicrobial effect was observed on Enterecoccusfaecalis, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeroginosa and Candida albicans. The results indicate that, both ginger and galangal extracts demonstrated effectiveantimicrobial and antioxidant properties. Their consumption may restrain the oxidationand prevent or delay the degenerative diseases as well as their extracts can be used as antimicrobial agents.