Chemical Compositions and Antibacterial Activities of Essential Oil from Leptoderris Micrantha (dunn)

ABSTRACT Leptoderris micrantha Dunn (Fabaceae) locally known as “atari obuko or ewe awo” is a medicinal plant native to Guinea, Ghana, and southern Nigeria. It is traditionally used in the treatment of various ailments which include psychosis, dropsy, swellings, edema and gout. This current study is aimed at investigating the chemical compositions and antibacterial activities of essential oil from Leptoderris micrantha. The Essential oil of L. micrantha were obtained by hydrodistillation while the chemical constituents were identified using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. The Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MICs) and Minimum Bacteriocidal concentration (MBCs) of the oil against the activities of S. aureus (ATCC 25923), Bacillus subtills (ATCC 6633), Streptococcus fecalis (ATCC 9790), Salmonella typhi (ATCC6539), Proteus vulgaris (ATCC 63800), E. coli (ATCC 25922) and P. aeruginosa (ATCC 27853) was achieved using agar dilution method. The GC-MS chromatogram of the essential oil from Leptoderris micrantha revealed the presence of major constituents like phytone (3.20%), pentadecanal (7.53%) and a-santalene (21.04%). The anti-microbial assay revealed a spectrum of antimicrobial activities with minimum inhibition concentrations (MICs) ranging from (31.25-125 µg/mL). S. aureus (ATCC 25923) and E. coli (ATCC 25922) were most susceptible (MIC: 31.25 µg/mL) to the essential oil of L. micrantha. The essential oil also displayed strong bacteriocidal activity against S. aureus, E. coli and P. aeruginosa at 250 µg/mL. The composition of the essential oil of L. micrantha, combined with its demonstrated antimicrobial potential, underscores the promising role of Leptoderris micrantha as a source of antimicrobial agent that can be useful in the treatment of combating bacterial infections. Keywords: Leptoderris micrantha, hydrodistillation, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations, Minimum Bacteriocidal concentration.