Antimicrobial properties of alcoholic extract of African peach (Nauclea latifolia) leaves

Abstract

This study presents results of the antimicrobial properties of Nauclea latifolia leaves commonly called African Peach. The ethanolic extract of the leaves at different concentrations was tested on some seven pathogenic bacteria; Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus iniae, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Samonella typhi and Aeromonas hydrophila using agar well diffusion assay. Results reveal that ethanolic extracts of N. latifolia had better antibacterial potentials than the methanolic extracts. Nauclea latifolia leaves showed the highest antibacterial activity in the ethanolic extracts on Bacillus subtilis with a zone of inhibition of 27.5 ± 0.25 mm while the lowest antibacterial activity was recorded on Escherichia coli with a zone of inhibition of 9.18 ± 0.04 mm. No antibacterial activity was recorded in the control (distilled water). The results signify that the alcoholic extracts of N. latifolia leaves can serve as a cheap source of raw material in the production biomedical products.