The laboratory assessment of the efficacy of extracts from some plants on isolates from wounds

Abstract

Extracts obtained from the plants Piliostigma thoningii, Abrus precatorius and Cassia alata were screened for antimicrobial activity using agar plughole method. The test organisms Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella ozaenae, Proteus vulgaris and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were subjected to the action of the extracts at various test concentrations. Piliostigma thoningii was highly active against all test organisms at the concentration of 10μg/ml, Abrus precatorius was active only on Klebsiella ozaenae at 100μg/ml while Cassia alata showed strong activity against all test organisms at 100μg/ml except Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The phytochemical screening revealed that the plants contain alkaloids, saponins, tannins and glycosides, which may be responsible for their antimicrobial activity and consequently their medicinal values.