ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF DRACAENA CINNABARI RESIN FROM SOQOTRA ISLAND ON MULTI DRUG RESISTANT HUMAN PATHOGENS
Al-Waili,..., Ahmad Al-Ghamdi, Mohammad Javed Ansari, Noori . 2016
Socotra Island is characterized by a high level of endemism (37%) comparable with other oceanic islands such as Mauritius,
Galapagos and the Canary islands (Miller and Morris, 2004). Dracaena cinnabari (Agavaceae) (D. cinnabari ) is arguably the main endemic
flagship species of Socotra, commonly known as Damm Al-akhwain in Yemen. It is one of the six arboreal species (Dragon blood tree) of the
genus (Marrero et al., 1998). D. cinnabari is threatened for the collection of resins (Dragon blood). Dragon’s blood is a deep red resin, which has
been used as a famous traditional medicine since ancient times by many cultures (Gupta et al., 2008). Dragon’s blood was used by the early
Greeks, Romans, and Arabs for its medicinal properties. Locals of Moomy city on Socotra island used the Dragon’s blood (Dracaena) as a sort
of cure-all, using it for many diseases such as wounds, diarrhea, fevers, dysentery diseases, ulcers of mouth, throat, intestines and stomach,
respiratory disease and eczema. In Yemeni folk medicine, dragon’s blood (Dracaena) is used for treating dysentery, diarrhoea, hemorrhage and
external ulcers (Milburn, 1984).
Infectious diseases are still the number one cause of death world-wide, and in tropical countries they account for approximately 50%
of deaths (Iwu et al., 1999). Staphylococcus aureus causes conjunctivitis, blepharitis, keratitis, suppuration, abscess formation, a variety of
pyrogenic infections and even fatal septicemia (Callegan et al., 2007). Candida albicans has become another main cause of morbidity and
mortality worldwide among immunocompromised individuals (Morgan, 2005). Importantly, Candida has been shown to be the third most
commonly isolated blood pathogen from patients in US hospitals (Ramage et al., 2001).
Some Candida species are found as endosymbionts in most healthy individuals. C.
Propolis is a regional strongly differing heterogeneous glue material generated by honeybees using plant resins and beeswax.
Beekeeping is one of the most important economic activities for rural communities in Saudi Arabia, where approximately 5000 beekeepers maintain more than one million honeybee colonies and produce…