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Assessment of
traditional medicinal application of Alchornea cordifolia
Lovet
T. Kigigha* and Marigold N. Atuzie
Department of Biological Sciences Niger Delta University
Wilberforce Island, PMB 71, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria.
*Corresponding author.
E-mail:
lovet_k@yahoo.com.
Accepted 1 April, 2010 |
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Ethanol and expressed extracts of the leaves of the shrub
Alchornea cordifolia were prepared for testing their
antibacterial activity using Escherichia coli and
Staphylococcus aureus as test organisms. The
broad-spectrum antibiotic Ampiclox was used in a 1:1
dilution to provide approximate bases for comparison of the
antibacterial activity of the extracts. Indication was that
the ethanol extract had a significantly higher inhibitory
zone in all the tests against E. coli (P ≤ 0.001)
ranging from 53.4 (± 4.8) to 30.4 (± 2.8) mm; this was
followed by the expressed extract (the form in which A.
cordifolia is used traditionally for treating fresh
wounds). Interestingly, for activity against S. aureus,
it was the expressed extract that exhibited the higher
inhibitory zone (P ≤ 0.001) ranging from 12.6 (± 4.8) to 6.3
(± 1.8) mm. All the extracts showed higher activity than the
diluted Ampiclox activity. The study albeit further detailed
assessments, appears to have justified the various
traditional applications of A. cordifolia in the cure
of some of the illnesses.
Key words:
Alchornea cordifolia, susceptibility, antibacterial,
Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus,
traditional medicine. |
