ANTIBACTERIAL EFFECT OF VERNONIA AMYGDALINA AND ALOE BARBADENSIS MILLER (ALOE VERA) ON STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS

ABSTRACT

This research work was aimed at evaluating the antibacterial activity of Vernonia amygdalina and Aloe barbadensis miller on Staphylococcus aureus . Twenty (20) stock cultures of S.aureus were collected. These bacterial isolates were subjected to antibacterial susceptibility testing using extracts of Vernonia amygdalina and Aloe barbadensis miller, extracted with various solvents (ethanol, and water). The diameter inhibition zones, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) were measured. All the Staphylococcus aureus were resistant to the extracts of Aloe barbadensis miller while few isolates of Staphylococcus aureus was susceptible to  both water and ethanolic extracts of Vernonia amygdalina having the highest zone of 11mm for isolate 18 and lowest zone of inhibition of 10mm for isolate 16. The ethanolic extract of Vernonia amygdalina has an MIC value of 100mg/ml while that of water extract has the highest MIC value of 100mg/ml for isolate 16 and lowest MIC value of 50mg/ml for isolate 18. This suggests that Aloe barbadensis miller has no antibacterial effect on S.aureus when water is used  as solvent  for extraction as it does not extract adequate amount of metabolites needed for antibacterial activity while Vernonia amygdalina has antibacterial effect against some strains of S.aureus. I recommend that further studies should be made to determine the active bioconstituent responsible for the antibacterial activity of Aloe barbadensis miller.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Certification                                                                                                                             i

Dedication                                                                                                                                ii

Acknowledgement                                                                                                                   iii

Table of Content                                                                                                                      iv

List of Table                                                                                                                            vi

Abstract                                                                                                                                   vii

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION                                                                                    1

1.0  Background of Study                                                                                                          1

1.1Aims and Objectives                                                                                                            4

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW                                                                        5

2.0   Origin of Phytomedicine                                                                                                  5

2.1   Drug resistance in bacteria                                                                                               6

2.1.1Need of new antimicrobials to combat resistance                                                            7

2.2 Characteristics of phytomedicine                                                                                       7

2.2.1 Why the demand for phytomedicine                                                                                7

2.2.2 Therapeutic benefit of phytomedicine over synthetic drugs                                            8

2.3  Plant product as medicinal agents                                                                                      9

2.3.1 Metabolites                                                                                                                       9

2.3.2 Present use of plant as antimicrobial                                                                               10

2.4 Phyto-chemical analysis of medicinal plant                                                                       10

2.5 Economic benefit                                                                                                               11

2.6 Aloe vera                                                                                                                            11

2.6.1 Scientific classification of aloe vera                                                                               12

2.6.2 Description of aloe vera                                                                                                  12

2.6.3 Taxonomy and nomenclature                                                                                          13

2.6.4 Anatomy of aloe vera                                                                                                      13

2.6.5 Distribution of aloe vera                                                                                                  14

2.6.6 Cultivation of aloe vera                                                                                                   14

2.6.7 Chemical constituents of aloe vera                                                                                  15

2.6.8 Medicinal properties                                                                                                        16

2.6.9 Health benefits of aloe vera                                                                                             16

2.7 Medicinal uses                                                                                                                    16

2.7.1 Side effect of aloe vera                                                                                                    18

2.7.2      Cosmetic values of aloe vera                                                                                        19

2.7.3 Mechanism of action of aloe vera                                                                                   20

2.8 Bitter leaf (Vernonia amygdalina)                                                                                     21

2.9 Scientific classification of bitter leaf                                                                                 21

2.10 Origin and geographic distribution                                                                                  21

2.11 Properties of Vernonia amyygdalina                                                                               22

2.12 Uses of Vernonia amygdalina                                                                                          22

2.13 Phytochemical composition of Vernonia amygdaliina                                                    22

2.14 Biological activities of Vernonia amygdalina                                                                  23

2.15 Biology and pathogenicity of the test organism                                                               23

2.15.1 Staphylococcus aureus                                                                                                  23

CHAPTER THREE                                                                                                               25

3.0 Materials                                                                                                                            25

3.1 Sample preparation                                                                                                            25

3.2 Extraction of samples                                                                                                        25

3.3 Preparation of media                                                                                                          26

3.4 Antibacterial activity                                                                                                         26

3.4.1 Preparation of stock solution of extract                                                                          26                                                                                                         

3.4.2 Reactivation of stock culture of tests organism                                                              26

3.4.3 Culturing and sensitivity testing                                                                                     26

3.4.4 Determination of minimum inhibitory concentration                                                     27

CHAPTER FOUR                                                                                                                 28                                             

4.0 Results                                                                                                                               28                                          

CHAPTER FIVE                                                                                                                  33  

5.0 Discussion                                                                                                                        33                                  5.1 Conclusion and recommendation                                                                                     34

References                                                                                                                             35

LIST OF TABLES

TABLES                                                                       PAGES

4.1 Antibacterial activity of Vernonia amygdalina on Staphylococcus aurues                                                                   29

4.2 Antibacterial activity of Aloe vera on Staphylococcus aureus                                        30

4.3  Minimum Inhibitory Concentration of ethanol extract of Vernonia amygdalina           31

4.4  Minimum Inhibitory Concentration of aqueous extract of Vernonia amygdalina         32                                              

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0     BACKGROUND OF STUDY

Since dawn of the civilization, nature has been a treasure of remedies for providing relief from various ailments afflicting mankind. Plants usually contain many biologically active structurally diverse compounds which are useful as drugs, lead structures or raw materials and are used primarily for treating mild or chronic diseases (kumar et al., 2013). The earliest written records on Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Chinese and Indian traditional medicine have listed medicinal plants and prescriptions used in treating various ailments. Herbal medicines are in great demand in the developing countries for primary healthcare because of their wide biological and medicinal activities, higher safety margins and lesser costs. Even in less developed societies, medicinal recipes from plants have been passed orally from generation to generation. According to World Health Organisation (WHO), about 80% of the world population relies chiefly on the plant based traditional medicine especially for their primary healthcare needs (Nitha et al., 2012; Mishra et al., 2013). Medicinal plants are the richest bio-resource of traditional systems of medicine, modern medicines, food supplements, folk medicines pharmaceutical intermediates and chemical entities for synthetic drugs (Hammer et al., 1999). It has been estimated that 14-28% of higher plants species are used medicinally and that 74% of pharmacologically active plant derived components were discovered after following up on ethno medicinal use of the plants. Plants are rich in a wide variety of secondary metabolites such as tannins, alkaloids, terpenoids and flavonoids etc. which possess antimicrobial properties and may serve as an alternative, effective, cheap and safe antimicrobial for the treatment of microbial infections. A number of interesting outcomes have been found with the use of a mixture of natural products to treat diseases, most notably the synergistic effects and polypharmacological application of plant extracts

(Gibbon, 2003). Infectious diseases are responsible for large scale morbidity and mortality worldwide. Synthetic drugs are not only expensive and inadequate for the treatment of diseases but are also often with adulterations and side effects (Mishra et al., 2011). Plants are important sources of medicines and presently about 25% of pharmaceutical prescriptions in the United States contain at least one plant-derived ingredient. In the last century, roughly 121 pharmaceutical products were formulated based on the traditional knowledge obtained from various sources. Plant derived drugs came into use in the modern medicine through the uses of plant material as indigenous cure in folklore or traditional systems of medicine. The world is now moving towards the herbal medicine or phytomedicines that repair and strengthen bodily systems (especially the immune system, which can then properly fight foreign invaders) and help to destroy offending pathogens without toxic side effects. The earliest documentation about the usage of herbal remedies comes from China and dates back to 2800 BC. Today, it has been developed as a separate industry as many people favour herbal medicine over synthetic medicine.

Coming nearer home in Africa, different African countries have for a long time used all sorts of herb for the treatment of different types of diseases. The problem of herbal medicine in Nigeria is that it is not well documented. Practitioners all over the country have died not having recorded the knowledge of herbal medicine for descendants ( Paul, 2018). Few herbal remedies have conclusively demonstrated any positive effect on humans, possibly due to inadequate testing (Ernst ,2007). However, examples of medicinal plants in use in other parts of the world and in Nigeria in particular that have demonstrable some interesting pharmacological results includes: Aloe vera, it is traditionally used for healing burns and wounds ( Maethaisong et al., 2007).  

 Currently 80% of the world population depends on plant-derived medicine for the first line of primary health care for human alleviation because it has no side effects. Several regulatory models for herbal medicines are currently available including prescription drugs, over-the-counter substances, traditional medicines and dietary supplements (Mukeshwar et al., 2011). The multidrug resistant microbial strains are continuously increasing due to indiscriminate use of broad-spectrum antibiotics, intravenous catheters, immunosuppressive agents, organ transplantation and ongoing epidemics of Human Immunodeficiency virus (Kumar et al., 2013).

Two plants were selected for this work based on the ethnobotanical evidence of the plant in the community.

Aloe barbadensis Miller, commonly known as Aloe vera, belongs to the family Liliaceae.  Aloe vera is a typical xerophytes with thick fleshy, strangely cuticularized spiny leaves. It has been endorsed for large variety of conditions and has come to play a prominent role as a contemporary folk medicine.  The peeled, spineless leaves of the plant contain mucilaginous jelly from the parenchyma cells which is referred as Aloe vera gel. The gel is a watery-thin, viscous, colorless liquid that contains anthraquinone glycosides, glycoprotein, gamma-linolenic acid, prostaglandins and mucopolysaccharides that are essentially responsible for the medicinal properties including antibacterial, antifungal and its antiviral activity. Aloe vera is mainly known as Alon –Erin in Yoruba ( Linus, 2016) ,Ebube agu in Igbo then Tinya in Hausa. It has purgative, growth enhancer or promoter, aphrodisiac, and anti-inflammatory properties. It is also a good blood purifier, uterine tonic. Aloe vera is widely used in liver- spleen inflammatory conditions, skin diseases and ophthalmic disorders. Due to its anti-inflammatory and wound healing properties it is especially used in abscess, boils, blisters, ulcers and infected burn wounds. Many studies have demonstrated so far the presence of many biologically active photochemical in the various solvent extracts of Aloe vera gel, which may be responsible for its hypoglycaemic and antioxidant properties. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of different solvent extracts of Aloe vera against common skin pathogens of public health significance.

Vernonia amygdalina, commonly known as bitter leaf, is a shrub that grows up to 3 meters high in the African tropics and other parts of Africa, particularly, Nigeria, Cameroon and Zimbabawe (Farombi,2011). Flower heads thistlelike, small, creamy-white, sometimes slightly touched with mauve, about 10 mm long, grouped in dense heads, axillary and terminal, forming large flat clusters about 15 cm in diameter but not conspicuous; sweetly scented, especially in the evening. The genus was named in honour of an English botanist, William Vernon, traveller and plant collector in North America in the 17th century.

1.1  AIMS AND OBJECTIVE.

1.11   AIM

This work is aimed at determining the antibacterial effect of Aloe vera and Vernonia amygadalina  on Staphylococcus aureus.

1.12   OBJECTIVES .

Ø  To determine the antibacterial activity of Aloe vera and Vernonia amygdalina on Staph. aureus using ethanol and water as solvent for extraction.

Ø  To measure the zone of inhibition of these plants on Staph. aureus.

Ø  To determine the minimum inhibitory concentration of the plants on Staph.aureus.

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