Abstract

The present study deals with the antimicrobial activity of the sequential extracts (petroleum ether, benzene, acetone, chloroform, ethanol, water, etc.) of the leaves of Cassia nodosacarried out against certain bacteria which are: Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeroginosa and fungi including, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Fusarium moniliformae and Rhizoctonia bataticola using disc diffusion technique. Results showed that most of the extracts were effective against all the test microorganisms. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of the extracts of chloroform, benzene, acetone and ethanol were found to be 2 × 10⁴ µg/ml, while the petroleum ether and water showed no inhibition. The results of the study provide scientific basis for the use of the plant extracts in the treatment of fungal and bacterial diseases. Therefore, the various active principles possessing antimicrobial activity may be extracted from the leaves of C. nodosa by various organic solvents.

Key words: Cassia nodosa, antimicrobial activity, petroleum ether, bezene, chloroform, acetone, ethanol, water, bacteria, fungi.