Antimicrobial activity and phytochemical investigation of crude extracts of the fruits of Solanum incanum (Solananceae) and Dovyalis abbysinica (Flacourtiaceae)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the in-vitro antimicrobial activity and to test the presence of phytochemicals in methanolic crude extracts of the fruits of Dovyalis abbysinica and Solanum incanum. The antibacterial and antifungal activities of methanol extracts of Solanum incanum and Dovyalisabbysinica, respectively, were carried out by agar diffusion assay technique against one bacterial strain, Staphylococcus; and one fungal strain, Trichophyton rubrum. Crude extracts of both plants showed activity against both the fungus and the bacterial test microorganisms. The methanolic crude extracts of both plants revealed the presence of phytochemicals such as alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, phenols, saponins and in one case proteins. This study provides some scientific basis upon which these two traditional medicinal plants have found usage in the treatment of a variety of ailments.