ABSTRACT
Neisseria and Mycoplasma are two prevalent bacteria in the female urogenital tract leading to gynecological infections and infertility. The aim of this study was to assess the antibacterial activity of Tamarindus indica and Syzygium aromaticum extracts against Neisseria and Mycoplasma isolates. It was a cross cectional study on 60 asymptomatic women at the Protestant and Regional Hospital of Ngaoundere. For this reason, a large consecutive sample of patients with several well-defined characteristics was assembled and urine and cervical-vaginal swab were collected using standard procedures. After being isolated on a specific medium, several strains of Neisseria and Mycoplasma were identified based on their morphological and biochemical characteristics. The antibacterial activity of the plant extracts was tested using the agar-well diffusion method. It was discovered that 70% of asymptomatic women had overall infection, with varying prevalence rates. The prevalence rates of Neisseria and Mycoplasma were 14.29% and 85.71% respectively. The aqueous extracts of Syzygium aromaticum against Neisseria produced inhibitory diameters of 43 mm, 40 mm and 32 mm at doses of 20 mg/mL, 10 mg/mL, and 5 mg/mL, respectively while, at the same doses, the aqueous extract of Tamarindus indica produced inhibitory diameters of 16 mm, 14 mm and 13 mm, respectively. The combined extract of Syzygium aromaticum and Tamarindus indica exhibits inhibitory diameters of 25, 23, and 30 mm at 20 mg/mL, 10 mg/mL, and 5 mg/mL, respectively. Syzygium aromaticum extract alone showed efficacy against Mycoplasma, with diameters of 16.5 mm, 13 mm and 10.5 mm at concentrations of 20 mg/mL, 10 mg/mL, and 5 mg/mL respectively. Inhibition diameters of 18 mm (for fosfomycin and ofloxacin), 22 mm (for chloramphenicol and ceftriaxone) and 26 mm (for levofloxacin) were found using Neisseria isolates. The only drugs that demonstrated efficacy against Mycoplasma were Minocycline and Josamycin. Given these findings, extracts of Syzygium aromaticum and Tamarindus indica can be investigated and used to treat infections caused by Niesseria and Mycoplasma.
ABSTRACT
Background: In Cameroon, most peoples use traditional medicine treating infectious diseases. To verify the scientific bases of these locally used medicinal plants, an ethnobotanical survey was carried out in some villages of Vina and Mayo-Louti Divisions. Materials and Methods: Interviews were conducted through structured questionnaires among 31 traditional healers living in these divisions. With the medicinal plants revealed, a literature investigation on their therapeutic effects, as well as in vitro antimicrobial activity of these plants were conducted. The agar diffusion method was used to determine the antibacterial activities of the methanol extracts against the pathogens while the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) was determined using the Broth dilution method. Result: A total of 15 medicinal plants species belonging to 12 families are being used in the treatment of numerous infectious diseases in the Vina and Mayo-Louti Divisions. Khaya senegalensis (Meliaceae), Terminalia glaucescens (Combretaceae), Flacourtia flavescens wild (Salicaceae), Pterocarpus erinaceus (Fabaceae) and Boswellia dalzielii (Burseraceae) were the mostly used plants for the treatment of infectious diseases in the study areas. Maceration (43.75%) was the common mode of preparation, followed by infusion (31.25%) and decoction (25.00%). Bioassay showed that crude methanol extract of Pterocarpus erinaceus and Flacourtia flavescens were the most active plant extract with a MIC of 0.8 mg/ml on many tested bacteria. The antibacterial activity of Boswellia dalzeilii from Cameroon are reported here for the first time. Conclusion: Many herbals remedies are used in these divisions for the treatment infectious diseases. The plants can be used as source of antibacterial drugs to treat infections caused by susceptible bacteria