Secondary Metabolites and Antimicrobial Profile of the Crude Stem and Rhizome Extracts of Lasimorpha Senegalensis (SCHOTT) Araceae

Medicinal plants have been used to treat a variety of disorders in African traditional medicine as well as other forms of treatment from around the world. Approximately 80% of the world’s population, primarily in Africa and other underdeveloped countries, still relies mainly on traditional or herbal medicine for disease treatment. The study’s goal was to evaluate the stem and rhizomes of Lasimorpha senegalensis for phytochemical and antibacterial properties utilizing clinical isolates. The stems and rhizomes were obtained in the wild in Korokorosei Community, Southern Ijaw LGA, Bayelsa state, and identified at the NDU Department of Pharmacognosy and Herbal Medicine. Following preliminary phytochemical screening of the crude stem and rhizome, methanol, water, and dichloromethane fractions were extracted from both stem and rhizomes and subjected to TLC and antimicrobial evaluation against some clinical isolates obtained from Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital, Okolobiri, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria. The presence of flavonoids, tannins, glycosides, and modest antibacterial activity on the stem was discovered. The methanolic and dichloromethane fractions of the stem showed mild activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, compared with the standard drug used, with the highest zone of inhibition at 8 mm and lowest at 4 mm, at 500 mg/ml and 62.5 mg/ml respectively, while the aqueous fraction showed no activity against all the test organism.

Keywords: Medicinal Plant, Lasimorpha Senegalensis, Antimicrobial, Phytochemicals, Korokorosei.