ABSTRACT:
Objective – Nauclea latifolia had been reported to have antimicrobial properties. The people of Ogidi in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State, Nigeria, used it to treat wound infections. This study is therefore aimed at determining this claim ie antimicrobial effect of this plant using the leaves of Nauclea latifolia which will also serve as a criteria to recommend the Ethnopharmacological uses of the plant Methodology - The plant leaves were dried, powdered and extracted by cold maceration with Ethyl acetate for 24hours. This was concentrated using rotary evaporator. Phytochemical evaluation revealed the presence of alkaloids, tannins, sterols, glycosides and saponin in varying degrees. The antimicrobial activities (sensitivity test) of the crude extracts and the standards (augmentin; an antibacterial agent and ketoconazole; an antifungal agent) were evaluated against Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria and fungi using agar diffusion method at the concentration of 100mg/ml for extracts and 50µg/ml for standards. The same method was used to evaluate the minimum inhibitory concentration. Result - results show that ethyl acetate extract of the leaves exhibited activity against E.coli, S.dysentariae, S. aereus, B. subtilis and A. niger, with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ranging from 1.86mg/ml- 11.75mg/ml. On Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the ehyl acetate extract of the leaves also show significant effectiveness when compared to the standard. The percent susceptibility test indicated that the effect of methanolic extract of leaves on S. dysentariae is very high (78.9%). Conclusion - From the results obtained, it could therefore be concluded that the leaves of Nauclea latifolia possess broad spectrum antimicrobial activities. Nauclea latifolia may be useful in the formulation of antimicrobial agent that could be used for the treatment of microbial infections of different origins.