Evaluation Of In-vitro Antibacterial And Antifungal Activities Of Crude Extracts And Solvent Fractions Of Methanol Extract Of Leaves Of Ricinus Communis Linn (euphorbiaceae) Against Selected Pathogens.
Infectious disease impacts are reduced due to development of antimicrobial agents. However, therneffectiveness of the antimicrobial agent is reduced over time because of the emergence ofrnantimicrobial resistance. To overcome these problems scholars have been searching for alternativernmedicines, particularly focusing on traditionally used medicinal plants. Ricinus communis Linn isrnused as a traditional treatment for bovine mastitis, wound infection, and other medicinal purposes.rnMoreover, the antimicrobial activity of Ricinus communis Linn leaf at crude extract level has beenrnconfirmed against human originated pathogens in the previous studies. The objective of the presentrnstudy was to further evaluate the antimicrobial activities of Ricinus communis Linn leaf extractsrnand fractions. Ricinus communis Linn leaves were macerated in absolute methanol and acetonernsolvents. The methanol crude extract was shown best antimicrobial activity and subjected tornfurther fractionation via increasing polarity of solvents (n-hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, andrnaqueous). Test microorganisms included in the study were six laboratory reference bacteria (E.rncoli, S. aureus, S. agalactiae, K. pneumoniae, P. aeruginosa, and S. Pyogenes), two clinical isolaternbacteria (E. coli and S. aureus), and one fungus (Candida albicans). The agar well diffusionrnmethod was employed to determine antimicrobial activity. The minimum inhibitory concentrationsrn(MIC) and minimum bactericidal/fungicidal concentrations (MBC/MFC) were determinedrnthrough broth microdilution. The results indicated that the best antimicrobial activity forrnethylacetate fraction ranging from 14.67 mm (clinical E. coli) to 20.33 mm (S. aureus) atrn400mg/ml however, n-hexane exhibited lowest antimicrobial activity. Among tested fractions,rnethyl acetate fraction was produced lowest MIC values ranging from 1.5625mg/ml (S. aureus) torn16.67 mg/ml (Candida albicans). The ethyl acetate fraction showed bactericidal activity againstrnall tested microorganisms. In conclusion, ethyl acetate fraction of crude methanol extract ofrnRicinus communis Linn leaf exhibited the best antimicrobial activity.