Antimicrobial Activities and Phytochemical
Analysis of Moringa oleifera Leaves on
Staphylococus aureus and Streptococcus
species

Ajayi A.O.; Fadeyi T.E.

Abstract

Antimicrobial Activities and Phytochemical Analysis of Moringa oleifera Leaves on Staphylococus aureus and Streptococcus species

Objective: This study is aimed at determining appropriate solvent that is effective among the aqueous, ethanol, and petroleum ether extracts of Moringa oleifera leaves respectively, examined for their antimicrobial activities against selected clinical organisms including Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus species.
Methods: Leaves of Moringa plant were collected in a clean bag within the town of Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State, Nigeria. About 200g of the plant prepared in powdered form were separately soaked in 400ml of 95% Ethanol, Distilled water and Petroleum ether in a 500ml reagent bottle and stoppered. This was allowed to stand for 14 days to permit full extraction of the active ingredients. The extracts were tested on the microbial isolates cultured on Mueller Hinton agarusing an agar-disc diffusion method. Plant filtrates were used for the phytochemical screening for flavonoids, tannins, saponins, alkaloids, reducing sugars, anthraquinones and anthocyanosides. The minerals components were also determined using standard biochemical methods.
Results: This study showed that petroleum extract of Moringa oleifera is significantly more active against the growth of Streptococcus species with the 0.6g/ml concentration giving the highest measurement of zone of inhibition. Phytochemical screening shows that the plant sources contain some compounds like tannin, phenol, alkaloid, flavonoids, oxalate, saponin and phytate part which forms their bioactive components. While the minerals component from this sources (per 100g) are sodium(Na), potassium(K), calcium(C), magnesium(Mg), zinc(Zn), iron(Fe), lead(Pb), copper(Cu), manganese(Mn) and phosphorus(P).
Conclusion: This study helps to determine the local and pharmaceutical value of Moringa oleifera leaves for treatment of some diseases including clinical organisms such as Staphylococus aureus and Streptococcus species. The data obtained in this study will be useful in discovery of new antibiotic for therapeutic purposes especially in overcoming some resistant strains problems.