Abstract

PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND ANTIMICROBIAL EVALUATION OF THE LEAVES OF SARCOCEPHALOUS LATIFOLIUS AND MOMORDICA CHARANTIA L.

Onyeloni Sunday Onyemali* and Ahomafor Joy Emovigho

ABSTRACT

The search for alternative to available synthetic antimicrobial is becoming compelling due to multi-drug resistance strains of pathogens. Plant are known to be rich source of medicine because they produce wide array of bioactive molecules. This study investigates the phytochemical content and combined antimicrobial activity of the aqueous extract of the leaf of two Nigerian medicinal plants (Sarcocephalous latifolia belonging to the family ―Rubiaceae and Momordica charantia of the family Curcubiaceae. The phytochemical analysis was carried out using standard procedure while the antimicrobial analysis was done using the disc dilution method on Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi and Candida albicans as test organisms. Phytochemical such as tannins, flavonoids, alkaloids, steroids, reducing sugars, cardiac glycosides were found present. The aqueous extracts of the leaves of both plants were sensitive to the test organisms with their sensitivity varying with their concentrations or degree of their dilutions. The aqueous extracts of both plants gives yields of 19.8519% and 7.2897% for the leaves of S. latifolia and M. charantia respectively. The combined antimicrobial activity of the extracts of both plants was antagonistic and as such the combine use of these plants in treatment may lead to therapeutic failure. The study confirms/validates the ethnomedicinal/folkloric use of these plants in the management and treatment of infectious diseases, dysentery, diarrhea, gastrointestinal upset and skin infection in Nigeria.

Keywords: Phytochemical, Antimicrobial evaluation, Minimum inhibitory concentration, Bioactive constituents.