No abstract

This study evaluated the toxicological effect of oral administration of Phoenix dactylifera seed essential oil (PDEO) in Wistar rats. PDEO was extracted through a steam-distillation technique. Acute toxicity study evaluated administration of a single dose of the oil in a group (n = 5) of rats followed by 24 h observation, for sub-acute toxicity evaluation, the animals were randomly divided into five groups (n = 3). Group 1 to 4 rats, respectively, received 62.5, 125, 250, and 500 mg/kg bw of PDEO for fourteen days, while the fifth group served as control. At the termination of the study, blood samples were obtained for biochemical and hematological analyses, while vital organs were histopathologically examined. Results from this study revealed no mortality or abnormal behavioral changes in the animals. A dose-related increase in bodyweight and hematological parameters was observed across the treated groups (p < 0.05). At a dosage of 500 mg/kg bw, PDEO caused slight elevation in biochemical marker levels and mild changes in histological architecture of liver and kidney of the test rats. This study revealed that PDEO exhibited significant hematopoietic attributes with no adverse effect on the experimental rats’ vital organs at concentrations below 500 mg/kg bw.

Introduction: Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) is a significant pharmacological plant and regularly used in different parts of the world. The antibacterial activity of the methanol leaf extract of A. paniculata against bacterial consortia from blood of diabetic patients was evaluated in this study. Methods: The enumeration of bacteria from blood samples of diabetic patients and their antibiotic sensitivity pattern were done using standard techniques. The phytochemical analysis of A. paniculata methanol extract and antibacterial assay of the extract were also done using standard methods. Results: Staphylococcus aureus had the highest occurring rate of 19.56 % while Klebsiella pneumoniae had the lowest occurring rate of 0.40 %. The isolates exhibited different sensitivity patterns to conventional antibiotics. There were variations in the zones of inhibition of A. paniculata methanol extract against the bacterial isolates as extract showed concentration was dependent on antibacterial activity with all the bacterial isolates susceptible to the extract. The minimum inhibitory concentration (mg/ml) of the A. paniculata methanol extract ranged from 5 mg/ml to 10 mg/ml while the minimum bactericidal concentration (mg/ml) of the bacteria isolated from diabetic patients ranged from 10 mg/ml to 20 mg/ml. Conclusion: Findings revealed that the methanol leaf extract of A. paniculata very strong antibacterial activity for a wide range of bacteria from blood samples of diabetic patients and more reliable than commercially available antibiotics hence suggesting that leaves of A. paniculata can be used to develop novel antibacterial drugs.

Aims: Khaya grandifoliola C.DC is a plant used locally in Nigeria ethno medicine for remedy of various disease conditions. However, there is little scientific evidence to support the therapeutic claims of the plant. Therefore, these investigations were conducted to determine the antimicrobial activity, antioxidant and cytotoxic potentials of the plant extracts. Methodology and results: In vitro antimicrobial activity of the leaf and stem bark extracts of K. grandifoliola against some human pathogens was done using agar diffusion method. The free radical scavenging activity and cytotoxic property of the plant materials were evaluated using 2, 2-diphenyl-1-pieryhydrazyl radical (DPPH) and brine shrimp lethality bioassay methods respectively. The yields of the plant material extracts ranged from 3.57±0.06 to 6.49±0.01% and 4.76±0.02 to 9.17±0.06% for the leaf and stem bark extracts respectively. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of KG-A and KG-E ranged from 2.5 to 200 mg/mL and recorded remarkable activity against the growth of Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella typhi, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Trichophyton rubrum and Aspergillus flavus. However, Strepcoccus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and T. rubrum were resistant to the KG-W. The plant extracts demonstrated high DPPH free radical scavenging activity when compared with ascorbic acid used as control in the assay and, also exhibited lethality against brine shrimp larvae with LC50 values ranging from: leaf extracts (0.67 to 1502 ppm) and stem bark extracts (0.91 to 1431 ppm). Conclusion, significance and impact of study: The results show that the KG-A and KG-E have great potentials as antimicrobial agent and may be used in the treatment of infectious diseases caused by the susceptible organisms.

No abstract