An investigation of the antimicrobial activity of acmella caulirhiza
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Date
2013Author
Sinei, Kipruto A
Okalebo, Faith A
Mugo, Hannington N
Mwalukumbi, Josephat M
Language
enMetadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Background:
Acmella caulirhiza
is a plant that is used traditionally to treat sev
eral disorders such as mouth ulcers,
sore throat, toothache and earache, among others. I
t is a small annual or perennial herb whose locatio
n is widespread
worldwide.
Objectives:
The objective of the study was to determine whethe
r the leaves, stem and the flowers extract of the p
lant
possess antibacterial and antifungal activity and t
o find out which part of the plant is the most acti
ve, if any
.
Methodology:
Acmella caulirhiza
was collected from the wild in Kericho County. The
flower heads, the leaves and the
stems were dried separately, ground into a powder a
nd extracted with chloroform. The plant extracts we
re tested for
activity against
Escherichia Coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida al
bicans and Bacillus pumilus.
Results and Discussion:
The plant extracts inhibited the growth of
Escherichia Coli, Staphylococcus aureus and
Bacillus pumilus.
The activity was highest in the stems extracts. Th
e extracts, however, did not have any anti-fungal
activity when tested against
Candida albicans
. It was concluded from these results that the anti
-bacterial activity may
aid in the efficacy when the plant is used to treat
mouth ulcers or sore throat.
Key words:
Acmella caulirhiza
, anti-fungal activity, anti-bacterial activity, tr
aditional medicine
Citation
Sinei, Kipruto A., Faith A. Okalebo, Hannington N. Mugo, and Josephat M. Mwalukumbi. "An Investigation of the Antimicrobial Activity of Acmella caulirhiza." African Journal of Pharmacology and Therapeutics 2, no. 4 (2013).Publisher
University of Nairobi
Collections
- Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) [10378]