Pharmaceutical Biology ISSN: 1388-0209 (Print) 1744-5116 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/iphb20 Antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties of Funtumia elastica Christian Agyare, George Asumeng Koffuor, Yaw Duah Boakye & Kwesi Boadu Mensah To cite this article: Christian Agyare, George Asumeng Koffuor, Yaw Duah Boakye & Kwesi Boadu Mensah (2013) Antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties of Funtumia elastica, Pharmaceutical Biology, 51:4, 418-425, DOI: 10.3109/13880209.2012.738330 To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.3109/13880209.2012.738330 Published online: 22 Jan 2013. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 368 View related articles Citing articles: 6 View citing articles Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=iphb20 Antimicrobial anti-inflammatory Funtumia elastica Pharmaceutical Biology, 2013; 51(4): 418–425 © 2013 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc. C. Agyare et al. ISSN 1388-0209 print/ISSN 1744-5116 online DOI: 10.3109/13880209.2012.738330 Pharmaceutical Biology 2013 RESEARCH ARTICLE 51 4 Antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties of 418 Funtumia elastica 425 Christian Agyare1, George Asumeng Koffuor2, Yaw Duah Boakye1, and Kwesi Boadu Mensah2 04May2012 1Department of Pharmaceutics, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana and 2Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical 13August2012 Sciences, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana 05October2012 Abstract Context: Funtumia elastica (Preuss) Stapf. (Apocynaceae) has a long ethnopharmacological history for uses such as 1388-0209 treatment of whooping cough, asthma, blennorhea, painful menstruation, fungal infections, and wounds. Objective: To investigate the antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties of ethanol extracts from the leaves 1744-5116 and stem bark of Funtumia elastica based on its ethnopharmacological uses and also determine the secondary metabolites present in the extracts. © 2013 Informa Healthcare USA, Inc. Materials and methods: The antimicrobial activities of ethanol leaf and bark extracts of F. elastica were determined using the microdilution technique (MIC determination) and agar diffusion method using 10, 25, and 50 mg/mL concentrations against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Candida 10.3109/13880209.2012.738330 albicans, Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus niger as test organisms. Anti-inflammatory activities of the doses of extracts at 30, 100, and 300 mg/kg per body weight were determined by carrageenan-induced edema in the footpad of 7-day- old chicks and the foot volumes measured at hourly interval post-treatment for 5 h. Results: The MIC ranges of both ethanol leaf and bark extracts against the test organisms were 125 (lowest MIC) to1550 µg/mL (highest MIC) and 125 (lowest MIC) to 1750 µg/mL (highest MIC), respectively. The ethanol leaf and bark extract of F. elastica showed significant anti-inflammatory activity (p ≤ 0.001) at 30, 100 and 300 mg/kg. Preliminary phytochemical screening revealed that F. elastica bark contains hydrolysable tannins, sapogenetic glycosides, steroids and saponins while the leaves contain hydrolysable tannins, flavonoids, starch and alkaloids. Tannin contents of the leaf and stem bark were 2.4 and 1.3% w/w (related to the dried material), respectively. Discussion and conclusion: Both ethanol leaf and bark extracts of F. elastica showed antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activities and these pharmacological properties may be responsible for the ethnomedicinal uses of the leaves and stem bark of the plant. Keywords: Inflammation, bacteria, fungi, antibacterial, antifungal, Apocynaceae Introduction estimated that about 19,000 people in the United States There has been increase in antibiotic resistance and die every year from MRSA (Klevens et al., 2007) and in reports of treatment failures with antibiotic therapy in 2004, 63% of all reported Staphylococcus infections in both humans and other animals over the past recent the United States were caused by MRSA (CDC, 2007). years (Zetola et al., 2005) especially the appearance of Methicillin was developed as an alternative treatment for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and the increasing rate of Staphylococcus infections already multiple drug-resistant strains of Salmonella typhi. It resistant to penicillin. At that time, about 60% of all has been estimated that in the United States of America Staphylococcus infections were resistant to penicillin. alone, at least 18,000 people die every year from drug- Hence, traditional antibiotics are not being used for resistant infections (Alderman & Hastings, 2003). It is the treatment of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Address for Correspondence: Dr. C. Agyare, Department of Pharmaceutics, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. Tel: +233246369803. E-mail: [email protected] (Received 04 May 2012; revised 13 August 2012; accepted 05 October 2012) 418 Antimicrobial anti-inflammatory Funtumia elastica 419 infections (Micet, 2007) but rather “last-resort” of Desmodium caudatum (Thunb.) DC. (Leguminosae), intravenous vancomycin and other newer antibiotics traditionally used for the treatment of various forms are being used or prescribed for the treatment of MRSA of pains, has been found to possess analgesic, anti- infections consequently intensive use of antibiotics often inflammatory and antipyretic properties (Ke-Jia et al., resulted in the development of resistant strains (Tenover, 2011). Funtumia elastica (Preuss) Stapf. (Apocynaceae), 2006). There is a need for a search for new antibiotics known commonly as silkrubber (local Asante-Twi name from other sources including medicinal plants. is “Frumtum/Ofruntum”), is traditionally used to treat Inflammation refers to an innate, nonspecific series whooping cough (Burkill, 1995), inflammatory diseases of highly interrelated series of events that are set into such as asthma, blennorhea, and painful menstruation motion in response to foreign invasion, tissue damage (Olaniyi, 1989), cutaneous fungal infections, hemor- or both with the ultimate goal of bringing to the invaded rhoids, syphilis, gonorrhea (Odugbemi, 2006; Burkill, tissue or infected area, phagocytes and plasma proteins 1995) and wounds (Adekunle & Ikumapayi, 2006). Some that isolate, destroy or inactivate the invaders, remove steroidal alkaloids (holarrhetine, conessine, holarrhe- debris, and prepare for subsequent healing and repair sine and isoconessimine) have been isolated from the (Sherwood, 2006). Inflammation and infection are fre- stem bark and conanine group, namely, irehdiamine A quently accompanied by imbalance in the intestinal and D, irehamine, conkuchine and irehine from leaves of microflora. Inflammation is one of the responses of the F. elastica (Zirihi et al., 2005). This study investigated the individual to pathogenic invasion and occurs in most antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activities of etha- bacterial infections and disorders of the cardiovascular, nol stem bark and leaf extracts of F. elastica based on its respiratory, lymphatic, genitourinary, nervous and der- ethnobotanical uses. Preliminary phytochemical screen- matological systems. A strong inflammatory response ing for secondary metabolites was also performed. may then be mounted to microfloral bacteria, leading to perpetuation of the inflammation and gut barrier dys- Materials and methods function (Isolauri et al., 2002). For instance, Helicobacter pylori resides in the gastric mucus layer of humans and Plant material and chemicals induces a chronic inflammatory response that can result Stem bark and leaves of Funtumia elastica were col- in both peptic ulceration and gastric neoplasms (Baser, lected in July, 2007 from the Bobiri Forest Reserves of 1993) and chronic colonization of the lower respira- the Forestry Research Institute of Ghana (FORIG) near tory tract by bacterial pathogens induces a chronic Kubease, Ashanti Region, Ghana, and identified by Dr. inflammatory response with lung damage (Sethi, 2000). A. Asase, Department of Botany, University of Ghana, Hence, any bioactive agent with antimicrobial and anti- Ghana. A voucher specimen of the plant (number AA 113) inflammatory properties may be helpful in the above dis- has been deposited at Ghana Herbarium, University of ease conditions. A survey conducted by United Nations Ghana, Ghana. Unless stated otherwise, all the chemicals Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)- were purchased from Sigma (Deisenhofen, Germany). General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) showed that 33% of total drugs produced by pharmaceutical Preparation of extracts industries are derived from plants and microbes, 60% The plant materials were air-dried and powdered. of medicinal products are natural origin (Srinivasan Powdered materials (200 g) of Funtumia elastica were et al., 2001). Some traditional orthodox anti-inflamma- extracted with 70% ethanol using a Soxhlet apparatus. tory agents have been demonstrated to exhibit antibacte- The ethanol extracts obtained were evaporated to dryness rial activity (Annadurai et al., 1998; Dutta et al., 2004) and under reduced pressure and kept in a desiccator. The yield hence any bioactive agent possessing both properties of the stem extracts were 5% w/w while leaves yielded may be beneficial