Abstract

Studies on the antibacterial and antifungal activities of the stem bark of Kigelia africana, (LAM). Benth (Family: Bignoniaceae), a medicinal plant used in South, Central and West Africa for the treatment of various ailments and infection was carried out using agar diffusion technique. The results revealed that the crude ethanolic extract exhibited antibacterial and antifungal activities against Staphylococccus aureus andCandida albicans with zones of inhibition measuring 15.0±0.95 and 20.75±4.6mm respectively. The aqueous extract exhibited no antibacterial or antifungal activity. The minimum inhibitory concentration for the extract was 6.25 ± 1.07 mg/ml for S. aureusand 7.92 ± 1.52 mg/ml for C. albicans. The ethanolic extract was also compared with various standards; Ampicillin, Gentamicin, Ceftriaxone and Ciprofloxacin. The ethanolic extract (20mg/ml) produced similar zone of inhibition with 25µg disc of amoxicillin.

Key words: Kigelia africana, antimicrobial activity, minimum inhibitory concentration.