Abstract

Astaxanthin,, a tetraterpenoid compound was formulated as liposomes and screened for anti-tubercular activity against different strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis: MTB, MDR-TB and H37Rv isolated from the patient sputum samples. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was determined by proportion-based method. The molecular docking analysis of astaxanthin with various mycobacterial drug target proteins were performed using in silico tools. Encapsulated astaxanthin showed better inhibition of M. tuberculosis with MIC value of 500μg/mL against all the selected strains. The docking analysis provided the interacting amino acid residues of selected mycobacterial enzymes and mode of ligand-protein interaction. Based on the present study, it was concluded that encapsulated astaxanthin could be a better cost effective natural compound for the treatment of tuberculosis among the patients which will combat side effects in comparison with the first line AntiTB drugs like rifampicin and isoniazid.

Key words: Mycobacterium tuberculosis, antitubercular activity, molecular docking, liposomal encapsulation, astaxanthin.