EVALUATIONOF A TRADITIONAL DECOCTION FOR ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY ON PATHOTYPESOF DIARRHOEAGENIC ESCHERICHIA COLI IN IKERE, EKITI STATE.

Abstract

In this study, a traditional decoction made from dried leaves of Psidium guajava (Linn.) and rootstalk of Zingiber officinale (Linn.) being used by local people to treat diarrhoea was evaluated for antibacterial activity against different pathotypes of Escherichia coli, a leading cause of bacterial diarrhoea. The microbial quality of the decoction was also evaluated. For this investigation, a total of 270 faecal samples was collected between January and July, 2015 from diarrhoeagenic patients admitted at the six medical centres in Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti State for the isolation of Escherichia coli using standard microbiological techniques. The pathotypes of the isolated E. coli were determined using multiplex polymerase chain reaction method while the susceptibility pattern of the isolates to the traditional decoction was determined using agar well diffusion assay. Moreover a replica of the traditional decoction and different variants were prepared in the laboratory and also evaluated for antibacterial activity on the isolates. This assay was carried out at regular intervals of 24 hours until a marked decline was noticed in the potency of the decoctions in inhibiting the growth of the test organisms. Conventional antibiotics served as control. Data obtained were subjected to statistical analysis of variance followed by Duncan's new multiple range test using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 17.0. Out of the 270 faecal samples examined, 63(23.3%) was positive for E. coli. Sixty two percent of the females sampled were positive for diarrhoeagenic E. coli while 38% of the males sampled were positive for the organism. Enterotoxogenic E. coli (ETEC) was detected in 16 (6%) cases, Enteroaggregative E. coli (EAEC) in 11 (4%) cases and Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) in 36 (13.3%) cases. The traditional decoction used had inhibitory effect on the growth of all the isolated E. coli with zone diameter ranging from 5.00 ± 1.71 to 22.50 ± 1.50 mm. The decoction prepared with schnapps however exerted greater inhibition than the one prepared using water. For the laboratory prepared variants, the growth inhibition mediated by dried guava leaves alone in schnapps on the test organisms was superior to that of the decoction made from both guava leaves and ginger and ginger alone. The inhibition mediated by all decoctions used however declined to zero level for 95% of the tested E .coli by the sixth day. This research has shown that the traditional decoction produced from dried guava leaves and root stalk of ginger has antibacterial activity against diarrhoeagenic E. coli. This lends scientific credence to its use in treating bacterial diarrhoea by the people in the community sampled.