Phytochemical investigation and evaluation of antimicrobial activities of Brucea antidysenterica leaves

The present study was intended to evaluate phytochemicals as well as antimicrobial (bacterial and fungal) activities of leaf extracts of Brucea antidysenterica. The powdered leaves of the plant were successively extracted with petroleum ether, chloroform/methanol (1:1), and methanol. The extracts obtained as such were subjected to phytochemical screening and the results of the screening revealed the presence of diverse phytochemicals about the extracting solvents. The leaf oil was extracted with n-hexane using the Soxhlet apparatus and its chemical composition was characterized by GC–MS which led to the identification of 30 compounds from Brucea antidysenterica representing 100% of the extracted oil. Among them, hexadecanoic acid, methyl ester (18.34%), hydroxy [(1-oxo-2-propenyl) amino-] acetic acid (8.88%), α-pinene (8.82%), 2-ethoxyamphetamine (8.46%), 1-methyl-2-phenoxyethylamine (7.76%), methyl tetradecanoate (6.38%) and 4-methylene-1-(1-methylethyl) bicyclo [3.1.0] hex-2-ene (6.31%) were the prevailing compounds. Antimicrobial activities of crude extracts and the leaf oil were performed against four bacterial and two fungal species. All the tested samples were active against all bacterial species at a dose of 20 µL. The findings of the present study supported the traditional use of the plant against various ailments.