Larvicidal, Molluscicidal and Antitrichomonal effects of Methanolic Extract of Lycopersicon Esculentum Mill Leaf from South-West Nigeria

Lycopersicon esculentum is used traditionally to treat skin infections among other uses. The methanolic extract was investigated for toxicity against Trichomonas gallinae , Aedes aegypti larvae and fresh water snail, Biomphilaria glabrata , using standard methods. Organisms were exposed to different concentrations of the extract and mortality observed accordingly. The result obtained showed concentration dependent mortality. The extract was toxic to Aedes aegypti larvae at concentrations between 1,500 – 5,600ppm with an LC50 of 2736.3ppm and toxic to Biomphilaria glabrata at 500 – 1,250ppm with an LC50 of 873.6ppm. The minimum lethal concentration (MLC) exhibited against Trichomonas gallinae was 31.25 ppm, while that of the standard drug, metronidazole, gave 0.625 ppm. The plant could be exploited in the control of schistosomiasis and trichomoniasis.Key words: Lycopersicon esculentum, larvicidal, antitrichomonas, molluscicida

Antimicrobial And Antioxidant Activities Of Some Nigerian Medicinal Plants

Ten Nigerian plants suggested from their ethnomedical uses to possess antimicrobial and antioxidant activities were studied for their anti-microbial and anti-oxidant properties. Antimicrobial activity was tested against Escherichia coli NCTC 10418, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Candida albicans, Candida pseudotropicalis and Trichophyton rubrum (clinical isolate). Trichilia heudelotti leaf extract showed both antibacterial and antifungal activities and was the most active against all the strains of bacteria tested. Boerhavia diffusa, Markhamia tomentosa and T. heudelotti leaf extracts inhibited the gram negative bacteria E.coli and P. aeruginosa strains whereas those of M. tomentosa, T. heudelotti and Sphenoceutrum jollyamum root inhibited at least one of the fungi tested. At a concentration of 312 μg/ml, hexane and chloroform fractions of T. heudelotti extract inhibited 6 and 14% of the fifty mult-idrug resistant bacteria isolates from clinical infectins, respectively. At ≤ 5mg/ml, the CHCl3 (64%) and aqueous (22%) fractions of T. heudelotti and those of CHCl3 (34%) and EtOAC (48%) of M. tomentosa gave the highest inhibition that was stronger than their corresponding methanol extracts. The corresponding EC50 of the extracts on M. acuminata, T. heudelotti, E. senegalensis and M. tomentosa were 4.00, 6.50, 13.33, and 16.50 ig/ml using the TLC staining and 1,1-dipheyl-2-picry-hydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging assay. Therefore, leaf extracts of M. tomentosa and T. heudelotti, especially the latter, possess strong antimicrobial and antioxidant activities and should be further investigated. These activities justified the ethnomedical uses of these plants. Keywords: keAntimicrobial, antifungal, antioxidant properties, Nigerian medicinal plants. African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines Vol. 4 (2) 2007: pp.173-18