PHYTOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF COLOCASIA ESCULENTA (TARO) MEDICINAL PLANT LEAVES USED IN FOLK MEDICINE FOR TREATMENT OF WOUNDS AND BURNS IN HUFASH DISTRICT AL MAHWEET GOVERNORATE–YEMEN

Abstract

In this study methanolic and aqueous extracts of one plant namely Colocasia esculenta, were screened for the presence of phytochemical constituents and tested for their antimicrobial and antioxidant activity. The qualitative phytochemical analysis revealed the results showed presence of alkaloids, terpenoids, glycosides, resins, saponins, tannins, flavonoids, phenols, and amino acid were present in the methanol extract, with absence of glycosides, and amino acids in the aqueous extracts in leaves plant. TLC tests conducted revealed Rf values in the leaves for alkaloids, flavonoids, tannins, phenols and saponins (0.95-0.96-0.97-0.96-0.97) respectively. The antimicrobial activity extracts against four bacterial isolates Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Klebsiella sp. and a single fungal isolate Candida albicans with concentrations (0.5 mg/ml, and 1,0 mg/ml) of the extract were added to the disc and respective solvent was used as negative control. The antioxidative activity of leaf was evaluated by using 1,1- diphenyl-2 picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), the results showed are 86.5%, lowest from standard, ascorbic acid 87.5%.