The antibacterial activity of raw and processed honey was carried out on the extracts of honey using solvents such as methanol, ethanol and ethyl acetate and compared it with the popular antibiotics. The inhibitory action of extracts of honey were evaluated against six bacterial strains, Gram-positive bacteria viz., Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus and Gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Salmonella typhi by agar well diffusion method. The extracts of raw and processed honey showed the zone of inhibition ranged from 6.94 mm to 37.94 mm. Methanol extract was more potent and showed a stronger antibacterial activity, followed by ethanol and ethyl acetate in the same order. Further, the residues remaining after extraction with solvents showed no bactericidal effect indicating that only extracts exhibit the antibacterial activity. Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) were evaluated by Macro broth dilution method. The most susceptible bacteria were Salmonella typhi, E. coli. and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. MIC and MBC values of extracts were found in the range of 0.625-5.000 mg/ml. The solvent extract of honey showed better antibacterial behaviors against Gram-negative bacteria than the standard antibiotics such as tetracycline and Ciprofloxacin. Infact the solvent extracts of honey were found to be bactericidal against P. aeruginosa for which even tetracycline was found ineffective.
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