Preparation and evaluation of herbal formulation; Hand sanitizer

Abstract

Hand sanitization is a crucial criteria in case of infection control. Hands are the prime culprit for the transmission of deadliest microorganisms to other body parts and other person as in communicable diseases. Application of Hand Sanitizers is significant in handling young infants, before preparing food, using bathroom, in hospitals (to impede nosocomial infections), etc. The present study used herbal drugs viz. Pomegranate peel, Lemon seed and Mace which comprises of active principle responsible for antibacterial activity. Extracted active principles were used to formulate an alcohol-based herbal hand sanitizer gel. The formulation was evaluated on the basis of various physical and microbiological parameters including homogeneity, pH and Viscosity testing; and In-vitro Antimicrobial activity by Agar plate diffusion method, Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and Determination of MIC respectively. The formulation was compared with the standard and gave promising results. This formulation might be useful in prevention of transmission of COVID-19 due to its dual merits, firstly its an alcohol based sanitizer and due to ethanol the envelop of the virus will be affected and hence killed of easily; secondly it contains Pomegranate peel extract which according to several studies as quoted by News -1 report is a known to degrade Corona virus 60 folds faster when given with Oseltamivir during the emergence of Corona infection. Keywords: Hand sanitization; Herbal sanitizer; Antimicrobial activity; Pomegranate peel (Punica granatum L.); Lemon seed (Citrus aurantiifolia (Christm.) Swingle); Mace (Myristica fragrans); tannins; terpenes; COVID-19.