Phytochemical and proximate content of Carapa procera bark and its antimicrobial potential against selected pathogens

Medicinal plants represent a great source of antimicrobial and phytochemical constituents which are increasingly used to treat microbial infections and other ailments such as tuberculosis, anemia, and trachoma. Despite the use of antibiotics, antimicrobial resistance continues to be a world issue, in as much as nutrition. This study investigated the presence of phytochemicals, proximate compositions, and antimicrobial activity of methanolic extract of Carapa procera bark. The bark of Carapa procera was collected, cleaned and air dried for 72 h. The powder obtained was treated with diethyl ether and soaked in methanol (99%) for 72 h to obtain crude extract. The extract was used to test for the presence of phytochemicals and antimicrobial activities. The raw bark was used for proximate analysis. The result showed presence of steroids, tannins and saponins, but no alkaloids present. The 100 mg/mL extract had the highest inhibition zone on all tested organisms from 24.00 ± 0.94 to 26.67 ± 1.18, and 50 mg/mL showed the least (16.67 ± 1.24) on Candida albicans. Staphylococcus aureus showed the lowest minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) of 3.12 mg/mL, whereas the Gram-negative bacteria exhibited variations in their sensitivity with E. coli having the highest MIC of 25 mg/mL. The extract had high MIC (6.25 mg/mL) on Candida albicans than clotrimazole (50 mg/mL). The proximate compositions of Carapa procera were moisture (6.07 ± 0.07%), ash (12.46 ± 0.46%), crude protein (9.54 ± 0.12%), crude fat (1.42 ± 0.06%) and carbohydrate (70.50 ± 0.35%). The energy value was 1413.17 kj. Thus, Carapa procera possesses both antimicrobial and nutritional potentials worth exploring and domesticating for sustainable management and conservation.

Activité antibactérienne d’un extrait hydroalcoolique des feuilles de Carapa procera (Méliacée) sur Staphylococcus aureus et Shigella sp.

Carapa procera (Meliaceae) est une plante très exploitée en médecine traditionnelle pour le traitement des pathologies infectieuses en Afrique occidentale. Le but de ce travail est d’évaluer l’activité antibactérienne de l’extrait hydroalcoolique des feuilles de cette plante sur la croissance in vitro de Staphylococcus aureus (204C12) et Shigella sp. (1177C10), deux germes multirésistants. Les paramètres antibactériens de Carapa procera ont été déterminés par les méthodes de diffusion en milieu solide et de dilution en milieu liquide respectivement pour les diamètres d’inhibition et les concentrations minimales inhibitrice et bactéricide (CMI et CMB). L’extrait de Carapa procera a montré une activité bactéricide effective avec des diamètres d’inhibition variant de 18 à 21 mm pour des CMB de 0,19 mg/ml et de 0,39 mg/ml respectivement contre Shigella sp. et Staphylococcus aureus. Le potentiel antibactérien de cet extrait pourrait être attribué aux alcaloïdes, aux tanins et aux flavonoïdes révélés par le screening phytochimique. Les résultats obtenus confirment l’utilisation traditionnelle de cette plante dans le traitement des différentes pathologies dans lesquelles les germes testés sont impliqués.

Antibacterial Activities of Soaps Formulated from Carapa procera Oil

Aims: The Carapa procera species is used of traditional for its antimicrobial properties especially for the skin. Its oil is used for various applications including the production of soaps used for personal hygiene and other skin conditions. The purpose of this study is to assess the antibacterial properties of soaps formulated from the oil of this species. Place and Duration of Study: The units of organic biological chemistry and structural organic chemistry of the UFR Structural Sciences of Matter and Technology (Université Félix Houphouet-Boigny) for the manufacture of soaps and the bacteriology unit of the Institut Pasteur de Côte d'Ivoire for bioassays between January 2019 and February 2020. Methodology: The antibacterial evaluation was carried out by the disc method on nutrient agars with determination of bacterial parameters (MIC and MBC). Discs of usuals antibiotics (Tetracycline, Rifampicin and Ampicillin) were used as a control to assess this activity as well as a commercially soap. Results: The inhibition diameters obtained from these different test soaps vary from 16.00 - 17.15 mm; 15.75 - 17.70 mm and 20.33 - 24.00 mm respectively on growth of the bacterial strains E. coli, P. aeruginosa and S. aureus. Unlike unscented soaps, scented soaps have the best inhibition diameter zones values. Moreover, the best MBC values (25 mg/mL) are obtained with the 2 soaps in fresh or aged state on the S. aureus strain against 50 mg/mL on the 2 other strains. In addition, with the exception of the E. coli strain which is resistant to Tetracycline, the 2 other strains are sensitive to all the antibiotics tested. In addition, this study also shows variability in the effect of soaps on these targets. Conclusion: Soaps formulated from Carapa procera oil do indeed possess antibacterial properties that could justify its usage against dermatoses in traditional medicine.