INVITRO EVALUATION OF ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF DIFFERENT SOLVENT EXTRACTS OF SECURIDACA LONGEPEDACULATA

Okoye EI, Ikegbunam MN*, Amadi AK and Obi GE

The objective of the present study was to assess the antibacterial activity of different solvent extracts of Securidaca longependuculata. The methanol, petroleum ether and aqueous extracts of the stem bark of the plant were examined for antibacterial activity against Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas spp, using the agar well diffusion method while the minimum inhibitory concentration of methanol extract was evaluated using agar dilution method. The extracts were graded into different concentrations of 100mg/ml, 50mg/ml, 25mg/ml and 12.5mg/ml. Results showed that petroleum ether extract had no antibacterial activity while the aqueous extracts showed the most potent activity against Staphylococcus aureus (22.5mm at 100mg/ml) and Salmonella typhi (19mm at 100mg/ml), Escherichia coli (18.5mm at 100mg/ml) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (17.5 at 100mg/ml). Methanol extract had the second highest activity against the test organisms. The MIC of the methanol extract against the test organisms were 100mg/ml for Staphylococcus aureus and �?100mg/ml for the rest of the organisms tested. The entire evaluations showed that Securidaca longependuculata had antibacterial activity against clinical isolates tested