Abstract
BackgroundThe development of resistance to many antibiotics currently in use has necessitated the search for more effective alternatives. Plants have been used in ethnomedicine in different parts of the world to treat various diseases. Many studies on plants have confirmed their medicinal potentials and have led to the isolation and characterization of several potential drug candidates. This study investigates the leaves of Icacina trichantha for antimicrobial properties and seeks to identify the compounds responsible for the observed activities. The leaves of Icacina trichantha are used in ethnomedicine for the treatment of skin infections. In this study, a solvent-based fractionation of bioactive compounds in the leaves of Icacina trichantha was carried out using hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanol. The resultant extracts were screened for antimicrobial activity against six bacteria and four fungi using standard procedures. GC–MS analysis of the most active fraction was carried out.ResultsThe non-polar fraction (hexane) showed better antimicrobial activity than the ethyl acetate and methanol extracts. At 200 mg/mL, the fraction showed inhibition of 28.0 ± 0.82, 23.7 ± 0.47, and 24.6 ± 0.94 against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Bacillus subtilis,, respectively. At the same concentration, the extract showed zones of inhibition of 18.0 ± 0.82 against Candida albicans and Penicillium notatum. The lowest Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MIC) values of 2.5 mg/mL were obtained against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Bacillus subtilis. GC–MS analysis of the hexane extract revealed 62 peaks, out of which ten peaks were successfully characterized.ConclusionsNone of the extracts screened for antibacterial and antifungal activities in this study is as potent as the standard drugs, Gentamicin and Tioconazole. The hexane extract, however, showed some activity against the microorganisms and was analyzed using GC–MS. The hexane extract contained many bioactive compounds, some of which could not be identified. Two of the identified compounds, Stigmasterol and β-Sitosterol, are known to possess antimicrobial properties. However, the unidentified compounds could also have contributed significantly to the antimicrobial activities of the extract.
Highlights
The development of resistance to many antibiotics currently in use has necessitated the search for more effective alternatives
The results indicated that the leaves possess antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella oxytoca [11]
2.2 Antimicrobial assay on extracts 2.2.1 Preparation of isolates Extracts were screened for activities against Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Salmonella typhi, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Rhizopus stolonifer, Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans, and Penicillium notatum
Summary
The development of resistance to many antibiotics currently in use has necessitated the search for more effective alternatives. Plants have been used in ethnomedicine in different parts of the world to treat various diseases. This study investigates the leaves of Icacina trichantha for antimicrobial properties and seeks to identify the compounds responsible for the observed activities. The leaves of Icacina trichantha are used in ethnomedicine for the treatment of skin infections. A solvent-based fractionation of bioactive compounds in the leaves of Icacina trichantha was carried out using hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanol. Alawode et al Beni-Suef University Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences (2021) 10:80 survival strategies against predation by microorganisms, insects, and herbivores [4] These compounds are potential alternatives to the current antibiotics. Several studies have established the potency of several of these plants, and further studies have been carried out on many to identify the compounds responsible for the observed activities. Phytochemical screening of the hexane, ethylacetate, and ethanol extracts of the leaves indicate the presence of different secondary metabolites including tannins, phenols, terpenoids, glycosides, steroids, and flavonoid [6, 11]
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