Bacteriological Assessment of Musa paradisiaca and Cymbopogon citratus leaf Extracts on Staphylococcus aureus Isolated from Seasoned Yaji sold in Avyi Ward, Wukari
*Awujo Nkem Chinedu, Tatah, Terence Nachacius, Agbochenu, Adah Isaiah
Department of Microbiology,
Federal University Wukari, P.M.B. 1020 Wukari, Taraba State
Email: chineduawujo@gmail.com; chineduawujo@gmail.com
*Corresponding Author
ABSTRACT
The antimicrobial properties of plants have been well documented globally.
Scarcely any assessed their activities against potentially food poisoning
organisms directly isolated from the contaminated foods. This present study was designed to evaluate the antimicrobial effects of extracts of Banana (Musa paradisiaca) and Lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus) leaves on Staphylococcus aureus isolated from Yaji, a Nigerian seasoned spice. The
standard organism used was S. aureus ATCC 6538. The cold and hot water
extracts of the fresh and dried leaves of both plants showed no effectiveness against the isolates. The ethanolic extracts of fresh Lemon
grass leaves showed no effectiveness against S. aureus. However, fresh
Banana leaf extracts at 100mg/ml produced inhibition zones of 22mm and
26 mm against S. aureus ATCC 6538 and the test S. aureus respectively.
The dried Lemon grass leaf extract at 100mg/ml, produced inhibition zone
diameters of 13mm and 14mm against the typed S. aureus strain and the test S. aureus respectively while at 50mg/ml, it produced an inhibition zone of 11mg/ml against S. aureus ATCC 6538 only. This study established the
efficacy of fresh and dried ethanolic leaf extracts of Banana and Lemon
grass respectively against S. aureus. The extracts of these plants should be
further analyzed to isolate the specific phytochemicals responsible for
their antibacterial properties. This research and eventual commercialization of the bioactive agents will be an added arsenal in the treatment of staphylococcal food infection and poisoning.
