Effects of Aqueous Leaf Extracts of Psidium guajava on Bacteria Isolated from the Navel of Day-Old Chicks

Research Article
Effects of Aqueous Leaf Extracts of Psidium guajava on Bacteria Isolated from the Navel of Day-Old Chicks

Y.A. Geidam, H. Usman, M.B. Abubakar and B. Ibrahim

Research Journal of Microbiology, 2007, 2(12), 960-965.

Abstract

Plants are used widely in the tropics and sub-tropical Africa and Asia for the treatment and cure of various illnesses such as malaria, diarrhoea, burns, gonorrhoea, stomach disorders and other infectious diseases; among which are livestock and poultry related diseases. Present studies on the preliminary phytochemical composition of the leaf of this plant revealed the presence of flavonoids, tannins, saponins, phenols lectins, triterpenes and carotenoids among others. Studies on the swab content from the navel of the day old chicks of both strains (broilers and layers) had revealed the presence of several gram positive and gram negative organisms such as E. coli, Staphylococcus sp., Streptococcus sp., Proteus sp., Klebsiella sp. and Corynaebacterium. The susceptibility tests on the isolated organisms by the extract under study had showed an appreciable dose dependant zone of inhibition ranging from 13-25 mm. The activity of the extract (400 mg mL^-1) can be favourably compared with that of the standard antibiotic-Oxytetracycline (10 mg mL^-1) particularly between the E. coli and Streptococcus with 25:30 mm and 20:22 mm as inhibition zone respectively where no significant difference was observed. The extract exhibited a highest MIC of 12.5 mg mL^-1 against Staphylococcus sp., while concentration of 25.0 mg mL^-1 was noted as the MIC values against both E. coli and Streptococcus sp.

ASCI-ID: 83-222

Table 1).

The effect of the three different concentrations of the extract on the bacteria isolated is presented in Table 2. The extract showed concentration dependent antibacterial activity against E. coli, Streptococcus sp., Staphylococcus sp. and Proteus sp. However, Klebsiella and Corynaebacteria appeared to be resistant to the extract. The result of the MIC of the extract on the three susceptible organisms is presented in Table 3.

Table 1:	Bacterial organisms isolated from the navels of day-old-chicks

+: Presence; -: Absence

Table 2:	Antibacterial Activity of Psidium guajava aqueous leaf on organisms isolated from the navel of day-old chicks

R = Resistant

Table 3:	The minimum inhibition concentration of Psidium guajava aqueous leaf extract against some of the isolated bacteria

+: ve = With bacterial growth; -: ve = Without bacterial growth; *: = MIC value

A study of the antibacterial effect of Psidium guajava aqueous leaf extract on bacterial organisms isolated from the navel of day old chicks was carried out. The result of the study showed that Psidium guajava leaf extract have concentration dependant inhibitory effect on the growth of E. coli, Staphylococcus sp., Streptococcus sp. and Proteus sp. isolated from the navel of day-old chicks. These results agree with those obtained by Jarlar and Wongkrajang (1999), who observed growth inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus. Similar results on growth inhibition were obtained by Gnan and Demello (1999), when testing the effect of the extract on Staphylococcus aureus by using guava leaf water extract. Iwu (1993) reported antibacterial effect Psidium guajava leaf extract against E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus and Proteus mirabilis. All the bacteria inhibited by the leaf extract have been incriminated in omphalitis as shown by Whittam and Wilson (1988) and Jordon and Pattison (1999).

The susceptibility test of the extract (400 mg mL^-1) against most of the organisms screened indicated that E. coli exhibited the highest inhibition zone of 25 mm which could be compared favourably with 30 mm of Oxytetracycline (20 mg mL^-1). The activity of the extract against E. coli is important since many avian pathogenic E. coli strains have been reported to be resistant to common antibacterial agents used in poultry production (Ewers et al., 2003). It has been reported that E. coli can be frequently isolated from a clear infection of Yolk sac (Whittam and Wilson, 1988). The minimum inhibitory concentration against the susceptible organisms indicated that E. coli and Proteus sp. had the lowest, suggesting that the extract can be a potential antibacterial agent if the active compound responsible is isolated.

Phytochemical evaluation of the leaf has shown the presence of flavonoids, tannins, saponins, Phenols lectins, triterpenes and carotenoids (Geidam et al., 2007). These compounds are known to be biologically active. The antimicrobial activity of the leaf extracts demonstrated can be attributed to the presence of flavonoids (Ali and Shamsuzzaman, 1996a). Similarly, Berdy et al. (1981) demonstrated that the antibacterial effect could also be due to guajaverine and psydiolic acid, which are also present in the leaf. Flavonoids derivatives have been found to inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus at the dilution of 1: 10,000 (Ali et al., 1996b). This is medically important in the treatment of inflamed tissues (Mota et al., 1985). And lectins in guava were shown to bind to E. coli preventing its adhesion to the intestinal wall and thus preventing infection (Berdy et al., 1981). Therefore, the activity of the extract against the isolated organisms in this study could be linked to the aforementioned reports. These effects can explain the long history of guava use in traditional medicine as a cure for many bacterial diseases. In conclusion, this study has provided a basis for the use of Psidium guajava in the treatment of yolk sac infection caused by E. coli, Staphylococcus sp. Streptococcus and Proteus either primarily or in combination. However, it is necessary to further investigate the in vivo antibacterial activities of the extracts in chicks.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors wish to acknowledge Mr. Fine Akawo of the Department of Chemistry and Mal. Isa Gulani of the Department of Veterinary Medicine; University of Maiduguri, Maiduguri, Nigeria; for the technical assistance rendered.

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