Azuonwu Obioma, Azuonwu Testimonies Chikanka, Ibulubo Dumo
The incidence of antibiotic resistance among bacteria to synthetic drugs is on the increase, as such there is the need for new and safer antimicrobials especially, from natural sources like plants. Leaves of Bryophyllum pinnatum and Aspilia africana are among the many that have been used by rural dwellers as medicines to treat infections. Methanol, hot water and ethanolic extracts of the leaves of Bryophyllum pinnatum and Aspilia africana were obtained and their antimicrobial activity testing against three microorganisms isolated from wound which includes Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The results indicated that the methanol extract of both plants had higher antimicrobial activity against the test isolates as compared with their ethanol extracts; while the hot water extracts had no antimicrobial activity against the isolates. Ethanol extracts of both plants showed little antimicrobial activity against the test isolates. S. aureus was more susceptible to methanolic extract of B. pinnatum with a zone of inhibition of 4 mm, E. coli was 3.0 mm while that of P. aeruginosa was 1.0 mm. Susceptibility pattern of the isolates to A. africana showed that P. aeruginosa was more susceptible with a zone of inhibition of 6.0 mm; that of S. aureus was 5.0 mm while that of E. coli was 3.0 mm. This shows that methanolic extracts of Bryophyllum pinnatum and Aspilia africana can be used against pathogenic organisms including Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa which can cause slow healing of wounds.
