Investigating Potential Modes of Actions of Mimusops kummel Fruit Extract and Solvent Fractions for Their Antidiarrheal Activities in Mice

Background. Fruits of Mimusops kummel A. DC. (Sapotaceae) are traditionally used for the treatment of diarrhea. The present study aimed at investigating modes of actions of this fruits for antidiarrheal action to guide future drug development process. Methods. Fractions of chloroform, n-butanol, and water were obtained from 80% methanol extract, which was prepared by maceration. Antidiarrheal activities and the modes of actions were investigated in mice. Results. In castor oil induced diarrheal model, the extract delayed onset of diarrhea and reduced number and weight of feces at all tested doses significantly. In this model all fractions significantly delayed onset of diarrhea at all tested doses. Charcoal meal test showed that the extract and all the fractions produced a significant antimotility effect at all tested doses. Enteropooling test showed that the extract as well as n-butanol and aqueous fractions at all tested doses produced a significant decline in volume and weight of intestinal contents, whereas chloroform fraction had substantial effect only at high dose. Conclusion. This study demonstrated that the extract and solvent fractions produced antidiarrheal activities due to dual inhibitory effect, intestinal motility, and fluid secretion, with the aqueous fraction being the most active among fractions in three models

ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF TOPICAL FORMULATION CONTAINING EUGENIA CARYOPHYLLATA L. (KRUNFUD) AND MYRITUS COMMUNIS L. (ADES) ESSENTIAL OILS ON SELECTED SKIN DISEASE CAUSING MICROORGANISMS

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Insecticidal Activity of Some Traditionally Used Ethiopian Medicinal Plants against Sheep Ked Melophagus ovinus

Twelve medicinal plants and a commercially used drug Ivermectin were examined for insecticidal activity against Melophagus ovinus sheep ked at different time intervals using in vitro adult immersion test. The findings show that at 3.13 µL/mL, 6.25 µL/mL and 12.5 µL/mL concentration of Cymbopogon citratus, Foeniculum vulgare and Eucalyptus globulus essential oils respectively, recorded 100% mortalities against M. ovinus within 3 hour of exposure. Significantly higher insecticidal activity of essential oils was recorded (P=0.00) when compared to 10 μg/mL Ivermectin after 3-hour exposure of M. ovinus at a concentration of ≥1.57 μL/mL, ≥3 μL/mL, and ≥12.7 μL/mL essential oils of C. citratus, F. vulgare, and E. globulus, respectively. Among essential oils, C. citratus has showed superior potency at a three-hour exposure of the parasite (P=0.00) at a concentration of ≥0.78 μL/mL. Strong antiparasitic activity was recorded by aqueous extract of Calpurnia aurea (80% mortality) at a concentration of 200 mg/mL within 24 h among aqueous extracts of 9 medicinal plants. The results indicated all the four medicinal plants, particularly those tested essential oils, can be considered as potential candidates for biocontrol of M. ovinus sheep ked

Effect of essential oils on Aspergillus spore germination, growth and mycotoxin production: a potential source of botanical food preservative

Objective: To investigate effect of essential oils on Aspergillus spore germination, growth and mycotoxin production. Method: In vitro antifungal and antiaflatoxigenic activity of essential oils was carried out using poisoned food techniques, spore germination assay, agar dilution assay, and aflatoxin arresting assay on toxigenic strains of Aspergillus species. Results: Cymbopogon martinii, Foeniculum vulgare and Trachyspermum ammi (T. ammi) essential oils were tested against toxicogenic isolates of Aspergillus species. T. ammi oil showed highest antifungal activity. Absolute mycelial inhibition was recorded at 1 μl/mL by essential oils of T. ammi. The oil also showed, complete inhibition of spore germination at a concentration of 2 μl/mL. In addition, T. ammi oil showed significant antiaflatoxigenic potency by totally inhibiting aflatoxin production from Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus flavus at 0.5 and 0.75 μl/mL, respectively. Cymbopogon martinii, Foeniculum vulgare and T. ammi oils as antifungal were found superior over synthetic preservative. Moreover, a concentration of 5 336.297 μl/kg body weight was recorded for LC50 on mice indicating the low mammalian toxicity and strengthening its traditional reputations. Conclusions: In conclusion, the essential oils from T. ammi can be a potential source of safe natural food preservative for food commodities contamination by storage fungi

Review of ethnobotanical studies on medicinal plants that used to treat diarrhea and dysentery in Ethiopia

Background: Diarrheal diseases are a major public health problem. Studies indicated that medicinal plants are being lost as a result of combined effects of environmental degradation, agricultural expansion, and deforestation and over harvesting of species. Poor resource administration, lack of awareness on herbal medicine and oral transmission of knowledge from generation to generation have also a great contribution for the lost. As a result, this review was initiated to document the medicinal plants, particularly those plants that used to treat diarrhea or/and dysentery in Ethiopia. Therefore, the data could be used as a basis for further studies.Objective: To review medicinal plants that used to treat diarrhea or/and dysentery and to document it that could be used as a source of knowledge to scientists.Methods: A review of available ethnobotanical literature on Ethiopian traditional medicine particularly that was related to diarrhea treatment was carried out. Google scholar online internet searches were done.Result: Ninety (90) medicinal plants distributed in 51 families were found from the reviewed studies. Of the 51 families 19 consist at least 2 species within each family, where as the remaining consist only one species. Most of them are used for diarrhea (76.5%), dysentery (16.5%) and the remaining 7 % used for both diarrhea and dysentery. Some of the plants also used for stomachache, vomiting and intestinal parasite therapy. Of different plant parts leaves are the most commonly used followed by roots, fruits, seeds and barks that used by preparing in different methods.Conclusion: This review has identified a number of important medicinal plants used by the Ethiopian community and traditional healers for the treatment of diarrhea/dysentery which provides a baseline for future phytochemical and pharmacological investigations. It has also identified the presence of bad practices that need improvement for better service such as absence of accurate and reproducible doses that need for a multidisciplinary approach to develop potentially effective dose

Antibacterial activity of extracts from Myrtus communis L. (Ades) and Dodoneae angustifolia L.F. (Kitkita) using bioautography method

The increasing prevalence of antibacterial drug resistant organisms in our globe and high prevalence of infectious diseases in developing countries has led to new efforts in the search of bioactive compounds from complex chemical composition of plant extracts. A bioautographic agar overlay assay using Staphylococcus aureous as the indicator organism for the detection of antimicrobial compounds from ten extracts of Myrtus communis L. and Dodoneae angustifolia L was analyzed. Hexane, dichloromethane, acetone, methanol and water solvents are used as extractant and ethyl acetate: methanol: water, chloroform: ethyl acetate: acetic acid and benzene: ethanol: ammonia solvent systems were used to separate the components from all the extract of Myrtus communis L. and Dodoneae angustifolia L. Our results indicated that the extracts of Myrtus communis L.f. and Dodoneae angustifolia L had bioactive constituents responsible for their antibacterial potentials. Water solvents extracted small number of antibacterial compounds from both plants, followed by hexane extractant; while dichloromethane, acetone and methanol extractant shared similarities in bioactive compounds on bioautograms, and extracted the highest number of antibacterial compounds with variety of polarities. Chloroform: ethyl acetate: acetic acid solvent system separated the largest number of biologically active components in all extractants. As a high number of antibacterially active compounds were found in M. communis and D. angustifolia extracts of dichloromethane, acetone and methanol, we recommend assay guided fractionation, isolation and dosage formulation of these antibacterial compounds from these plants for clinical applications. Keywords/phrases: Antibacterial, Bioactive-compound, Bioautography, Dodonaea angustifolia, Myrtus communisEthiop. J. Biol. Sci., 10(1): 57-72, 201