African Journal of
Microbiology Research

  • Abbreviation: Afr. J. Microbiol. Res.
  • Language: English
  • ISSN: 1996-0808
  • DOI: 10.5897/AJMR
  • Start Year: 2007
  • Published Articles: 5233

Full Length Research Paper

Antibacterial activity and phytochemical investigation of leaf and root extracts of Aloe gilbertii Reynolds

Dagne Addisu
  • Dagne Addisu
  • Department of Chemistry, College of Natural and Computational Science, Hawassa University, P. O. Box 05, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
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Kibret Fekadu
  • Kibret Fekadu
  • Department of Chemistry, College of Natural and Computational Science, Hawassa University, P. O. Box 05, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
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Salah Hamza
  • Salah Hamza
  • Department of Chemistry, College of Natural and Computational Science, Hawassa University, P. O. Box 05, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
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Legesse Adane
  • Legesse Adane
  • Department of Chemistry, College of Natural and Computational Science, Hawassa University, P. O. Box 05, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
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  •  Received: 25 June 2021
  •  Accepted: 13 April 2022
  •  Published: 31 January 2024

Abstract

The objective of the study was to test the antibacterial activities of crude extracts of roots and leaves of Aloe gilbertii Reynolds against clinical pathogens. The crude extracts were prepared via maceration technique employing n-hexane, acetone, chloroform, dichloromethane:methanol (50:50% V/V) and methanol solvent system. The phytochemical screening tests of the dichloromethane:methanol (50:50% V/V) root extract of A. gilbertii revealed the presence of alkaloids, glycosides, phenols, flavonoids, anthraquinones and terpenoids. In the same way, the phytochemical tests of dichloromethane:methanol (50:50% V/V) leaf extract of the same plant revealed the presence of alkaloids, saponins, phenols, flavonoids, anthraquinones and steroids. Antibacterial activities of both plant parts were tested against four bacterial strains namely Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli using the agar well diffusion method. Root extracts were found to possess better growth inhibitory activities against all the bacterial species. The zones of inhibition were in the ranges of 8 to 23 and 8 to 18 mm, for the root and leaf extracts, respectively. The finding of the study justifies the use of the A. gilbertii Reynolds in traditional medicine for the treatment of various human illnesses caused by bacterial organisms; however, further investigations are needed.

 

Key words: Antibacterial activity, phytochemical screening, Aloe gilbertii, leaf extract, root extract.