Alchornea cordifolia leaves have been reported to be used traditionally to treat wound infections. The leaves of Alchornea cordifolia were extracted with ethanol which was partitioned with ethyl acetate to obtain the ethanol extract and ethyl acetate fraction respectively. The extracts were screened for basic phytocompounds and subjected to antibacterial assay against bacterial isolates from infected wounds which include Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella spp, Enterobacter spp, Citrobacter spp, Escherichia coli, Proteus mirabilis and Proteus vulgaris. Agar well diffusion method was used to determine the antibacterial activity of the extract and fraction. Phytochemical investigation revealed the presence of carbohydrates, cardiac glycosides, saponins, flavonoids, tannins and alkaloids. The zone of inhibition ranged between 1.0 - 32.2mm for the entire microorganisms. This variation in level of the activity among the extracts could be due to the difference in solubility of the active ingredient in each solvent on one hand and to the constitutional or structural variability of the tested organisms on the other hand. The results of the study showed that the ethyl acetate fraction of Alchornea cordifolia leaves possess high level of antibacterial activity against bacteria associated with wound infection. This gives credence to traditional medicine application of the plant for treating wound infections.
Key words: Alchornea cordifolia, Ethyl acetate fraction, Wound infection, Antibacterial
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