PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND ANTIMICROBIAL EVALUATION OF DI-ETHYL ETHER EXTRACT OF GARCINIA KOLA (HECKEL) (BITTER KOLA) SEED

Milled dried Garcinia kola seed powder was subjected to phytochemical tests to determine its constituents. Subsequently, the Garcinia kola seed powder was extracted using a Soxhlet extractor and the antimicrobial activity screening of the resultant di-ethylether extract of Garcinia kola seeds was evaluated against Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Stappylococus aureus; Bacillus subtilis; Esherichia coli; Klebsiella pneumonia and Candida albicans by determining the measurement of zones of inhibition of growth of each organism by the extract prepared in Dimethylsulfoxide [DMSO]. Invitro assay of the extract using the cup method [three 6mm holes bored in solidified Marcfarland Standard bacteria- seeded and Sabouraud dextrose agar plate Candida albicans-seeded 9cm diameter agar plates with an aseptic cork-borer into which 0.25ml of (5 drops) of 100mg, 50mg and 25mg /ml dilutions of the extract were filled], was used to determine the sensitivity of the seeded organisms to the extract. Diameters of zones of inhibition of the growth of the seeded organisms were determined after incubating the plates at 37 0 C for 24 hours for the bacteria and at 25 0 C for 72 hours for the fungus respectively. Phytochemical screening of the Garcinia kola seed powder showed that components of the Garcinia kola seeds used in the study include starch, protein, glycosides, flavonoids, tannin, saponins, sterols and triterpenoids. Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Bacillus subtilis; and Klebsiella pneumonia were the most sensitive organisms to 100 and 50mg of the Garcina kola extract [to the same degree] while Klebsiella pneumonia was the most sensitive organism to the 25mg concentration of the extract. Staphylococcus aureus was the least sensitive to each of the 3 concentrations of the extract. The strongly anti-bacterial and weakly antifungal [inhibitory] actions of the di-ethylether extract of Garcinia kola seed obtained in this study are suggested to be due to the anti-oxidant and inhibitory activities of the triterpenoid (and probably also glycoside) components of the extract.