Valle et al. [22] recently reported the bacteriostatic and bactericidal activities of ethanol
extracts from Philippine medicinal plants on MDR clinical bacterial isolates. Results of the
study showed that among the twelve (12) plants tested, P. betle L. had the greatest antimicrobial
activities against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive MDR bacteria. It is in this light that
the present study was conducted. It aimed to determine and compare the antimicrobial potencies
of the methanol, ethanol and supercritical CO2 extracts of the Philippine P. betle on a
larger number of MDR bacteria isolated from recent clinical cases in tertiary hospitals in the
Philippines. The study did not include the isolation and identification of the antibacterial compounds.
Resolute results obtained from this study would definitely strengthen the potential of
P. betle as a novel and cost-effective agent against medically-important multidrug-resistant
bacteria, and would be a springboard for further studies on the purification and identification
of its active compounds.