Search

Abstract Background Albizia adianthifolia is used traditionally in Cameroon to treat several ailments, including infectious and associated diseases. This work was therefore designed to investigate the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of ethyl acetate extract, fractions and compounds isolated from the stem bark of this plant. Methods The plant extract was prepared by maceration in ethyl acetate. Its fractionation was done by column chromatography and the structures of isolated compounds were elucidated using spectroscopic data in conjunction with literature data. The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) assays were used to detect the antioxidant activity. Broth micro-dilution method was used for antimicrobial test. Total phenol content was determined spectrophotometrically in the extracts by using Folin–Ciocalteu method. Results The fractionation of the extract afforded two known compounds: lupeol (1) and aurantiamide acetate (2) together with two mixtures of fatty acids: oleic acid and n-hexadecanoic acid (B1); n-hexadecanoic acid, octadecanoic acid and docosanoic acid (B2). Aurantiamide acetate was the most active compound. The total phenol concentration expressed as gallic acid equivalents (GAE) was found to vary from 1.50 to 13.49 μg/ml in the extracts. The antioxidant activities were well correlated with the total phenol content (R2 = 0.946 for the TEAC method and R2 = 0.980 for the DPPH free-radical scavenging assay). Conclusions Our results clearly reveal that the ethyl acetate extract from the stem bark of A. adianthifolia possesses antioxidant and antimicrobial principles. The antioxidant activity of this extract as well as that of compound 2 are being reported herein for the first time. These results provide promising baseline information for the potential use of this plant as well as compound 2 in the treatment of oxidative damage and infections associated with the studied microorganisms.

Background: Albizia adianthifolia (Schum.) is medicinally used in Cameroon to manage bronchitis and skin diseases. Our previous study documented the antibacterial potential of its roots' methanol extract. In this study, methanol roots extract was subjected to chromatography techniques and fractions (AARa and AARb), sub-fractions (AARa1-4, AARb1-2 and AARb11-14) together with isolated phytochemicals were assessed for their antimicrobial as well as their antibiotic-potentiating effects towards Gram-negative multidrug resistant (MDR) bacteria., Methods: The antibacterial activities of the samples (determination of Minimal Inhibitory « MIC » and Minimal Bactericidal Concentration « MBC ») were determined by the modified rapid p-iodonitrotetrazolium chloride (INT) colorimetric assay, as well as those of antibiotics in association with the compounds. Column chromatography was applied to isolate phytochemicals from roots extract and their chemical structures were determined using spectroscopic techniques., Results: The phytochemicals isolated were stearic acid (1), a mixture (1:1) of stigmasterol and β-sitosterol (2 +  3), β-sitosterol 3-O-β- D -glucopyranoside (4), palmatin (5), homomangiferin (6) and mangiferin (7). Fraction AARa exhibited selective inhibitory effects whilst all tested bacteria were inhibited by AARb in MIC ranges of 8 to 1024 μg/mL. Sub-fractions AARb1-2 had MIC values between 8 μg/mL and 1024 μg/mL on all tested bacteria. Phytochemicals 4, 2 +  3 and 7 inhibited the growth of 54.54% (6/11), 45.45% (5/11) and 27.27% (3/11) tested bacterial strains, respectively. When tested with an efflux pumps inhibitor (Phenylalanine-Arginine-β-Naphthylamide or PAβN), the inhibitory effects of compounds 2 + 3 and 4 increased towards all the tested bacteria. In association with erythromycin (ERY), streptomycin (STR) and tetracycline (TET), compounds 2 + 3 and 4 had the most significant synergistic activity on the seven selected bacteria., Conclusion: The present study provides information on the possible use of Albizia adianthifolia and its constituents in the control of Gram-negative infections including MDR phenotypes.

Background: Antimicrobial resistance is a serious threat against humankind and the search for new therapeutics is needed. This study aims to investigate the antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of ethanol extracts and compounds isolated from Dissotis senegambiensis and Amphiblemma monticola, two Cameroonian Melastomataceae species traditionally used for the treatment of fever, malaria and infectious diseases., Methods: The plant extracts were prepared by maceration in ethanol. Standard chromatographic and spectroscopic methods were used to isolate and identify fourteen compounds from the two plant species [1-6 (from D. senegambiensis), 3, 4 and 7-14 (from A. monticola)]. A two-fold serial micro-dilution method was used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) against four bacterial strains including two resistant bacterial strains, methicillin resistant S. aureus (MRSA3) and methicillin resistant S. aureus (MRSA4) and three yeast strains., Results: The fractionation of EtOH extracts afforded fourteen compounds belonging to triterpenoid and phenolic derivatives. The ethanol extracts, compounds 3, 5-8, 10 and the mixture of 10 + 12 were active against all the tested bacterial and fungal species. Compound 7 (MIC = 16-32 μg/mL) and 10 (MIC = 8-16 μg/mL) displayed the largest antibacterial and antifungal activities, respectively. Compounds 7, 10 and the mixture of 10 + 12 showed prominent antibacterial activity against methicillin- resistant S. aureus (MRSA) which is in some cases equal to that of ciprofloxacin used as reference antibacterial drug. Compound 8 also showed high radical-scavenging activities and ferric reducing power when compared with vitamin C and butylated hydroxytoluene used as reference antioxidants. The tested samples were non-toxic to normal cells highlighting their good selectivity., Conclusions: The result of this investigation reveals the potential of D. senegambiensis and A. monticola as well as the most active compounds in the search for new antimicrobial and antioxidant agents. So, further investigations are needed.