Abstract
Background: As a result of high percentage of women infected with urinary tract infection (UTI) annually, many rural dwellers use Adansonia digitata fruit pulp as herbal cure. Adansonia digitata L. ( Malvaceae ) is one of the great trees idolised in Africa because of its therapeutic properties. Aim: This study aimed at identifying chemical compounds in the ethylacetate fraction of the baobab fruit pulp and indicated their biological activities to justify its use for the folkloric treatment of UTI. Methods: The crude extract from Baobab fruit pulp was partitioned and ethylacetate extract was used for assay. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis was performed to identify the bioactive compounds in the ethylacetate fraction, antioxidant activity was evaluated using 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays whilst the total phenolic and flavonoid contents were determined by already adopted protocols. The antibacterial properties were tested against some urinary tract pathogens using macro broth dilution method. Results: A total of 36 bioactive compounds were identified by GC–MS analysis, most of them have been reported as antibacterial, antioxidant, antidiabetic, antiasthma, antifungal, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer agents. The extract exhibited highest activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) 19582 (1.22 mg/mL) whilst Escherichia coli ATCC 8739 (˃ 8.6 mg/mL) displayed high level of resistance amongst the five bacterial isolates used in this study. Conclusion: These findings indicated that the extract contained bioactive compounds of therapeutic importance with significant antioxidant and antibacterial potentials and justify the folkloric use of this fruit in the treatment of UTIs by many African dwellers.
Highlights
Adansonia digitata L. (Malvaceae) is one of the eight species of Adansonia genus that is indigenous to sub-Sahara African
Whilst some even consider the tree as sacred (Muthai et al 2017) baobab leaves, bark and fruit are used for nutraceutical purposes in many African countries
This study showed that baobab fruits extract contained chemical compounds of therapeutic importance
Summary
Adansonia digitata L. (Malvaceae) is one of the eight species of Adansonia genus that is indigenous to sub-Sahara African. (Malvaceae) is one of the eight species of Adansonia genus that is indigenous to sub-Sahara African. The leaves, seeds and fruit pulp are edible and are consumed majorly by rural dwellers because of the cultural and religious beliefs of the consumers. Whilst some even consider the tree as sacred (Muthai et al 2017) baobab leaves, bark and fruit are used for nutraceutical purposes in many African countries. Kehlenbeck, Padulosi and Alercia (2015) reported that the presence of high concentration of essential amino acid in the seed makes it a good source of protein and it is roasted and consumed as snacks in some African countries. As a result of high percentage of women infected with urinary tract infection (UTI) annually, many rural dwellers use Adansonia digitata fruit pulp as herbal cure. Adansonia digitata L. (Malvaceae) is one of the great trees idolised in Africa because of its therapeutic properties
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