Evaluation of Antimicrobial Activity of Select Medicinal Plant Extracts Against Various Pathogenic Strains.

Abstract

The aim of this study is to evaluate the antibacterial effectiveness of water extracts, ethanolic extracts, as well as combined water and ethanolic extracts from the leaves of Jatropha gossypifolia and Holoptelea grandis against three pathogenic bacteria: Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, and Bacillus subtilis. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of these plant extracts against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria were determined using the agar-cup plate method.

The findings suggest that the combined ethanolic extract of Jatropha gossypifolia and Holoptelea grandis leaves exhibited greater efficacy in inhibiting the growth of Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus subtilis, compared to their individual water extracts, ethanolic extracts, and combined water extracts. Conversely, the combined water extract of Jatropha gossypifolia and Holoptelea grandis leaves showed higher efficacy in inhibiting the growth of Bacillus cereus compared to their individual water extracts, ethanolic extracts, and combined ethanolic extracts.

In terms of antibacterial activity, the zone of inhibition of the extracts was compared to that of amoxicillin.