In Silico Assay of Antibacterial Activity of Binahong (Anredera cordifolia) Leaf Extract to Streptococcus pneumoniae

Abstract

Pneumonia is a disease that frequently infects toddlers. Pneumonia cases in 2021 caused 9.4% of deaths in children aged 12-59 months. The effectiveness of pneumonia treatment is decreasing due to the increase of Streptococcus pneumoniae’s resistance to antibiotics. The application of natural plant extracts such as binahong (Anredera cordifolia) leaf extract is chosen as an alternative treatment to pneumonia. The purpose of this study was to disclose the active compound of binahong leaf extract (A. cordifolia) that has the potential as an antibacterial to S. pneumoniae. This study was conducted in September 2022 at Universitas Negeri Surabaya with in silico method (blind docking) using PyRx software. The results of the drug-likeness assay showed that the three selected compounds (Linoleic Acid, Phytol, and Hexadecanoid Acid) met the criteria as drugs. The molecular docking assay that has been carried out showed that Linoleic Acid has the lowest binding affinity value (-5.4 kcal/mol) when compared to Phytol and Hexadecanoid Acid indicating its higher potential. This study shows that the selected compounds of the binahong leaf extract have the potential to be antibacterial to S. pneumoniae with PBP2 as the target protein. It is nevertheless necessary to conduct further research to determine the effectiveness and bioavailability of these compounds.