COMPARISON OF ANTIBACTERIAL PROPERTIES OF SOLVENT EXTRACTS OF DIFFERENT PARTS OF JATROPHA CURCAS (LINN)

Abstract

Recent reports have suggested the urgent need for the development of alternative antibacterial substances of natural origin for the treatment of infections because of the growing cases of bacterial resistance to many available synthetic antibiotics. Jatropha curcas (J. curcas) belongs to the family Euphorbiaceae and has been widely reported for its medicinal values. It is used in traditional folklore medicine to cure various ailments such as skin infections, gonorrhoea, and jaundice and fever. Almost every part of J. curcas has been reported to have medicinal importance. In the present study, the aqueous, ethanol and pet-ether extracts of the root, stem bark and leaves of J. curcas were evaluated in vitro for antibacterial activities using Salmonella typhi (S.typhi) and Escherichia Coli (E.coli) as test organisms. The results were compared in order to identify the extract with the strongest growth inhibition properties. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the extracts revealed the presence of bioactive compounds with demonstrated antimicrobial properties. The ethanol extracts showed superior antibacterial activities compared with both the aqueous and pet-ether extracts. The root, stem bark and leaf ethanol extracts demonstrated comparable antibacterial activities against S. typhi and E. coli. Thus the root, stem bark and leaf of J. curcas are potential candidates in the search for potent antibacterial agents from medicinal plants.