Abstract

K. A. Abo *, I. O. Lawal and A. Ogunkanmi

We report antimicrobial potential of extracts of roots of Triclisia subcordata and whole plant of Heinsia crinita used as components of various herbal portions in ethnomedine in South West Nigeria to treat acute urinogenital infections and infertility. Methanol and hexane extracts of each plant were obtained by maceration and tested for antimicrobial activity using agar diffusion and microbroth dilution techniques. The extracts were tested against strains of Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and fungi including four species of Candida. The study showed that extracts of H. crinita and T. subcordata exhibited profound antibacterial activity against the typed and clinical isolates obtained from patients with STD and meningitis. High antifungal activity, particularly against the Candida species was noted as Candida species are implicated in candidiasis and vaginal thrush. Generally, the methanol extract was more effective than the hexane extracts on the test micro-organisms. The study justifies the ethnopharmacological uses of these medicinal plants for treatment of microbial infections.