Phytochemical and antimicrobial evaluations of selected medicinal plants used in the northern part of Surigao del Sur, Philippines

Abstract

Medicinal plants are widely used to cure and prevent numerous ailments. They usually contain phytochemicals which aid in developing innovative drugs that tackle the threat of resistant strains. This study investigated the ethanol extracts of four plant species commonly used in the northern part of Surigao del Sur, Philippines, for the treatment of various diseases through a qualitative phytochemical analysis. The investigation revealed the presence of Alkaloids and Steroid flavonoids in all four plant samples. The plant extracts of Chromolaena odorata, Celosia argentea, Cordia dichotoma, and Nepenthes bellii showed antibacterial activity to both Staphylococcus aureus (gram-positive) and Escherichia coli (gram-negative) bacteria, which were evident in the Zone of inhibition. The findings support using herbal plants in ethnomedicine to treat various infectious ailments.