Cytotoxicity and Antimicrobial Activities of Monechma ciliatum and Kigelia africana

Abstract EN

The use of medicinal plants as raw material in the production of drugs is again gaining popularity.

Monechma ciliatum and Kigelia africana are widely used in the South and Southwestern parts of Sudan for treatment of various diseases.

Seventy percent aquatic ethanol and water extracts of Monechma ciliatum seeds (Acanthaceae) and Kigelia africana fruits (Bignoniaceous) were investigated for their phytochemical constituents, antimicrobial activity and cytotoxicity using brine shrimps lethality assay.

Monechma ciliatum extract consisted of flavonoid, tannin, anthraquinone, and steroidal ring compounds, while the extract of K.

africana was found to contain trite pine, tannin, alkaloid, falconoid, saponnin, and cyanogenic glycosides.

Kigelia africana extracts showed high antimicrobial activity compared with Monechma ciliatum.

The aqueous extract of K.

africana was more active than 70% ethanol extract.

Kigelia africana aqueous extract was exhibited antibacterial activities (MIC 1.4 ± 0.2 - 2.0 ± 0.2) against Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebseilla pneumonia and Bacillus cereus.

While the 70% alcohol extract of K africana reflected moderate activities against more than one standard microbial strain.

On the other hand, the 70% ethanolic extracts of Monechma ciliatum had a moderate activity against one or more bacterial strain used, while the aqueous extract was exhibited less sensitivity toward the microorganisms used.

Also, the cytotoxicities of the aqueous and aquatic ethanol extracts of Kigelia africana fruits were found to be potent against brine shrimps with LC 50 value of 62.6 and 52.2 ppm respectively.

While the aqueous extract of M.

ciliatum was found to be potent against brine shrimps with LC 50 value of 40.2 ppm.

All plants extracts were exhibited no antifungal activity against all fungi strain tested.

The present results support the use of Kigelia africana in traditional medicine in the treatment of diseases like abscesses, cancer and cough, and suggest the possibility of isolating antibacterial and anticancer agents from Kigelia africana.