Antimicrobial Evaluation of Caesalpinia decapetala

Abstract

Objective: The present work is an attempt to assess the in vitro antimicrobial activity of the leaves of Caesalpinia decapetala (Roth) fabaceae family collected from forest area of Tamilnadu, India. Methods: The crude drug was successively extracted by Soxhlet assembly using Petroleum ether, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate and methanol as solvents. Preliminary phytochemical screening of different extracts was carried out using several colour and precipitative chemical reagents as per described methods. Antimicrobial activity of the extracts was evaluated against fungal strains (Aspergillus fumigatus and Candida albicans), Gram +ve bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes) and Gram –ve bacteria (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) using agar wells dilution method. Nutrient agar medium at37 oC and sabouraud dextrose e agar medium at 28 oC were used in antimicrobial activity evaluation and antifungal activity evaluation respectively. Results: Preliminary phytochemical screening of C. decepetala leaves showed the presence of alkaloids, glycosides, phenols, phytosterols, saponins and flavonoids crude drug. C. decapetala leaf extracts exhibited marked dose dependent antibacterial activity in vitro against tested bacteria. Methanolic extract was found to be more potent particularly against Staphylococcus aureus (Gram +ve bacteria) and staphylococcus aeruginosa (Gram -ve bacteria). Conclusion: Various phytochemicals were found to be present in C. decepetala leaves. Methanolic extract of C. decepetala leaves exhibited better antimicrobial activity in vitro and can be used as a good therapeutic approach for infectious disease management and therapy. Further studies on isolation of phyto-constituents and both in vitro and in vivo evaluation of pharmacological activities of isolated bioactive constituents of the crude drug are recommended as future works.