The antibacterial effect of aqueous and ethanolic seed extracts of Dacryodes edulis was studied using agar diffusion technique. Extracts tested at a final concentration 2000µg/ml produced in vitro antibacterial activities in assays against food-borne bacterial isolates of Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella aerogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhi and Proteus mirabilis. The highest zone of inhibition was obtained from ethanol extract at 2000µg/ml against Escherichia coli with a diameter of 28mm.The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the water extract ranged between 62.5-500µg/ml and 125-1000µg/ml respectively. The MIC and MBC of the ethanol extract ranged between 31.25-250µg/ml and 62.5-500µg/ml. The percentage inhibition of the isolates at 1000µg/ml was more in the ethanol extract (65.4-95.5%) compared to the water extract (30-2-60.2%). This study shows that the extracts of Dacryodes edulis have potential usage as a food preservative and pharmaceutical preparation.

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