Study Of Anti-bacterial Properties Of Carica Papaya Unripe fruit Extract On Bacterial Isolates From Patients' ~ ~ Wounds In Kiu-teaching Hospital

ABSTRACT

The Carica papaya (CP) is a member of the small family Caricaceae commonly grown globally. The different parts of the CP plant (the fruits, leaves, latex and seeds) can be eaten and also have been used for medicinal purposes as claimed traditionally for treatment of different ailments and wound healing. This research therefore was aimed at doing phytochemical screening of the components of the extracts of unripe fruit of CP and determining the antibacterial properties of CP on bacterial isolates from patients' wound in KIU-Teaching Hospital. This study was to swab wounds from consented patient, culture the sample to identifY the implicated microorganisms using biochemical studies. The bacterial isolates obtained were subjected to Antibacterial Susceptibility Testing (AST) using unripe fruit extracts of CP. Extraction of fresh unripe fruit of CP was done using both aqueous solvent and 50% ethanol. Antibacterial activity was determined by measuring zones of inhibition obtained form well diffusion method. Both aqueous and 50% ethanolic extracts of unripe fruit of CP had phenols, tannins, saponins, alkaloids, terpenoids, reducing sugars and cardiac glycosides as analysed in the phytochemical analysis. Both ethanolic and aqueous unripe fruit extracts of Carica papaya had antimicrobial activities against Staphylococcus aureus, Protues vulgaris, Enterobacter aerogens and Escherichia coli but no activity against Pseudomonas aeroginosa. Aqueous extract had more activity than 50% ethanolic extract but both extract had no activity against Pseudomonas aeroginosa while sensitive organisms to control antibiotic (ampicillin) were Enterobacter aerogens and other Staphylococcus species. It can be concluded that both aqueous and 50% ethanolic extracts of unripe fruit of CP contain phenols, tannins, saponins, alkaloids, terpenoids, reducing sugars and cardiac glycosides and these two extracts each has antimicrobial activities against Staphylococcus aureus, Protues vulgaris, Enterobacter aerogens and Escherichia coli without activity against Pseudomonas aeroginosa.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION ............................................................................................................................ 2 APPROVAL ................................................................................................................................... 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .............................................................................................................. 4 DEDICATION ................................................................................................................................ 5 ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................................................................ 6 ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... 7 TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................................ 8 CHAPTER ONE ......................................................................................................................... 10 1.0 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................... 10 1.1 BACKGROUND INFORMATION .................................................................................... 10 1.2PROBLEM STATEMENT ................................................................................................. 12 1.3 HYPOTHESIS ........................................................................................ l2 1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY ............................................................... 13 1.5 OBJECTIVES ......................................................................................... l3 1.6 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ........................................................................................ 14 CHAPTER TWO ........................................................................................................................ 15 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................ 15 2.1 CARICA PAPAYA ................................................... ......................................... 15 2.2 WOUND HEALING ....................................................................................................... 211 8 2.3 TRADITIONAL HERBAL MEDICINES ........................................................................ 28 2.4 ANTIMICROBIAL SUSCEPTIBILITY TESTING ......................................................... 29 CHAPTER THREE .................................................................................................................... 31 3.0 METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................................ 3 I 3.I STUDY DESIGN ........................................................................................................... 3I 3.2 SETTING OF THE STUDY .................................................................... .3I 3.3 SELECTION OF STUDY POPULATION ................................................... .3 I 3.4 DETERMINATION OF SAMPLE SIZE ...................................................................... 3 I 3.5 SAMPLING TECHNIQUES ..................................................................... 32 3.6 DATA COLLECTIONMETHODS ................................................................................. 32 3.6. I PLANT MATERIAL COLLECTION AND INDENTIFICATION ......................... 32 3.6.2 PREPARATION OF THE EXTRACT .......................................................................... 32 3.6.3 SOURCES OF CHEMICALS AND REAGENTS ........................................... 33 3.6.4 PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING .............................................................................. 33 3.6.5 MICROBIAL CULTURE AND IDENTIFICATION ................................................... 36 3.6.6 ANTIMICROBIAL SUSCEPTIBILITY TET (AST) ....................................... 36 3.7.0 OUTCOMEMEASURES ...................................................................... .37 3.8.0 DISSEMINATION OF RESULTS ............................................................ .37 3.9.0 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS ............................................................. .37