This study was designed to determine the antibacterial potential of Gum Arabic Tree (Acacia nilotica) pod extract on some pathogenic bacteria which could have health implications. Powdered pods of Acacia nilotica were extracted with ethanol and distilled water separately. The extracts were tested for antibacterial activities against the test isolates using Agar Well Diffusion method. The extracts were further subjected to qualitative phytochemical screening to detect secondary metabolites present using standard procedures. The minimum inhibitory and minimum bactericidal concentrations of the extracts were also detected using standard procedures. The phytochemical screening revealed certain metabolites (steroids, saponins, terpenoids, tannins, flavonoids, and alkaloids) in the ethanol and aqueous extracts, except for steroids, which were present only in ethanol extract. The result of the sensitivity test showed that ethanol pod extract produced the highest and least zone of inhibition against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (22 mm) and S. typhi (15 mm) respectively at 50mg/ml while the aqueous extract of the pod exhibited activity against S. typhi (20 mm) and E. coli (12 mm) at 50 mg/ml. This showed that the A. nilotica pod extracts could serve as potential antibacterial agents against pathogenic bacteria.
Key words: Antibacterial potential, Acacia nilotica, Pathogenic bacteria, Phytochemical, Screening
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