Design and microbial screening of herbal ointment of Phyllanthus amarus

Abstract

Objective: Herbal medicines contribute in no small measure to health care the world over, especially for rural dwellers and developing countries. The extracts of Phyllanthus amarus have been reported to be medicinal. In this study, herbal ointment containing methanol extract of the aerial part of Phyllanthus amarus was formulated and evaluated for the pH and spreadability as well as its antimicrobial properties against some human pathogens: Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Aspergilus niger. Method: Pulverized dried leaves were extracted using methanol in ratio 1:4. Simple ointment BP was used as ointment base for dispersion of the plant extract. Parameters investigated include; spreadability, pH and zones of inhibition of extract and formulated ointment while chloramphenicol and fluconazole were used as controls. The sensitivity of the organisms in ointment containing varying concentrations of the extract was also determined. Result: The pH of the ointment was 6.17 ± 0.9 and the spreadability was 120 ± 0.5. B. subtilis, P. aeruginosa and staph aureus were susceptible to ointment containing 0.1% w/v and 0.15% w/v, while E. coli and A. niger were resistant. The organisms were all susceptible to the ointment containing 0.2% w/w P. amarus . Conclusion: P. amarus ointment has good antimicrobial properties and can be used for the treatment of wounds and skin infection caused by these organisms.