Abstract

Antimicrobial activities of extracts from the edible bird's nest (EBN) against four food borne pathogens (Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albican, and Aspergillus niger) were investigated. The EBN extracts were prepared using two methods: a soaking extraction method in ethyl acetate or methanol at 100-3,000 mg/L and a solvent extraction method in ethyl acetate or methanol at 20-100 mg/L. The agar well diffusion method was employed to examine antimicrobial activity of each EBN extract at various concentrations. For the soaking extraction method using methanol, the EBN extract showed stronger antimicrobial activity for S.aureus (100 mg/L) and C. albican (100 mg/L) than for E.coli (1,000 mg/L) and A. niger (>3,000 mg/L) while the EBN extract derived by the soaking extraction in ethyl acetate showed no inhibitory effects. Results of the solvent extraction method showed that the EBN extracts using ethyl acetate were more effective than using methanol with C. albican (20 mg/L) and A. niger (20 mg/L). However, using methanol showed some activity with S. aureus at 20-100 mg/L. Using the solvent extraction method with methanol showed slight effects with E. coli (>100 mg/L). This study has demonstrated a potential of the EBN extract as an antimicrobial agent against food borne pathogens.