Comparative in Vitro Antimicrobial Activity of Solvent-Partitioned Curcuma longa L. Leaf Fractions against Selected Bacterial and Fungal Isolates
Keywords:
antimicrobial screening; Curcuma longa; dermatophytes; leaf fractions; solvent partitioningAbstract
Curcuma longa L. leaves remain underused despite reports that they contain antimicrobial constituents. This preliminary study evaluated the concentration-dependent inhibition-zone activity of solvent-partitioned leaf fractions against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, Trichophyton tonsurans, and Microsporum audouinii. A 70% methanol leaf extract was successively partitioned into n-hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, n-butanol, and residual aqueous fractions. Agar-well diffusion assays were
conducted as three replicate plate determinations per condition. Inhibition-zone diameters were expressed as mean ± standard error of the mean and analysed separately for each organism within each fraction using oneway analysis of variance followed by Tukey's honestly significant difference test at p < 0.05. At 100 mg mL⁻¹, the ethyl acetate fraction produced inhibition zones of 20.67 ± 0.67 mm against S. aureus, 20.00 ± 0.58 mm against T. tonsurans, and 19.67 ± 0.88 mm against M. audouinii. The dichloromethane fraction produced a 20.67 ± 0.67 mm zone against S. aureus at 100 mg mL⁻¹, whereas the residual aqueous fraction showed measurable activity against C. albicans and T. tonsurans. The n-hexane and n-butanol fractions had narrower inhibition profiles. These agar-diffusion findings identify fractions for further chemical and brothmicrodilution studies but do not establish minimum inhibitory concentrations, clinical efficacy, or therapeutic potency.
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