Antibacterial Efficacy of the Methanol Extract of Fruits of Trewia nudiflora Linn. (Euphorbiaceae)

Aims: Trewia nudiflora Linn. (Euphorbiaceae) which is a soft wooded tropical dioecious tree is used as traditional medicinal tree in many countries. Hence, this study was designed to assess the antibacterial activity of fruit extract of Trewia nudiflora against twelve pathogenic bacteria.

Methodology: Twelve pathogenic bacterial strains already available in the lab were used in this study. The four of the collected bacteria were Gram positive viz. Staphylococcus gallinarum, S. sciuri, Streptococcus iniae and S. constellatus and remaining eight were Gram negative viz. Xanthomonas axonopodies, X. campestris, Edwardsiella anguillarum, Siccibacter colletis, Aeromonas cavernicala, A. diversa, Vibro rotiferianus and Enterobacter xiangfangensis. Antibacterial efficacy of the methanol extract of fruits of Trewia nudiflora was evaluated by disc diffusion test and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) test.

Results: The result of disc diffusion test showed the significant antibacterial efficacy as indicated by the generation of zone of inhibition ranging from 15-20 mm around the disc soaked with fruit extract (15 μl/disc) against tested bacteria. The largest zone of inhibition (20 mm) was produced against E. xiangfangensis, A. cavernicala and V. rotiferianus while the smallest zone (15 mm) was produced against X. axonopodies, X. campestris, S. iniae and S. constellatus. The MIC value for fruit extract of Trewia nudiflora varied with bacterial species ranging from 100-200 μg/ml.

Conclusion: Therefore, it can be concluded that methanol extracts of the fruits of Trewia nudiflora may be a good agent for further research to confirm its use as a natural antibacterial compound against pathogenic bacteria in economic animals and human.