Abstract

PRELIMINARY PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS AND ANTIMICROBIAL ASSESSMENT OF EXTRACT FROM LEAVES AND ROOTS OF VERNONIA AMYGDALINA ON ESCHERICHIA COLI

*Nwachukwu,M.I¹, Dike,R.N¹, Nwachukwu,I.O¹, Ohalete,C.N¹ and Anyanwu,V.E. ².

¹Department of Microbiology, Imo State University Owerri Nigeria.
²Department of Industrial Microbiology, Federal University of Technology Owerri, Nigeria.

ABSTRACT

Culture, poor governance, drug resistance, poverty and other factors including emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases, have exacerbated the interest in Ethno-pharmacological research. Leaves and roots of Vernonia amygdalina were analysed qualitatively for phytochemicals. Alkaloids, tannin and anthranoid were found in the roots, only, saponin and Anthroquinine were only found in the leaves while Terpenoids (Polyphenols) were found in both parts of the plant. The cold aqueous, cold ethanol and soxhlet extracts of the leaves and roots inhibited the growth of the gram negative bacterium Escherichia coli at 200mglml of extract, while the minimum inhibitory concentration of the leaves cold ethanol extract is 25mgml. Overall, well-in-agar diffusion assay method gave a better activity than the Disc diffusion assay method. The extracts of the plant’s leaves and roots gave a superior activity than the Standard Tetracycline (30g). The Phyto-chemical and antimicrobial implications of the results are further discussed.

Keywords: Vernonia amygdalina, leaves, roots, extracts, phytochemicals, Escherichia coli, antimicrobial activity.