Antibacterial activity of aqueous extracts of selected chewing sticks

The aim of this study was to determine the antibacterial activity in extracts obtained from various Nigerian chewing sticks. Aqueous extracts from seventeen chewing sticks and the fruit of C. ferruginea, one fruit used in oral hygiene in Nigeria, were screened for antibacterial activity against type cultures of Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Eleven of the test extracts showed activity against at least two of these referenced organisms. Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of these eleven extracts against clinical isolates from orofacial infection were determined. All the extracts demonstrated activity against Staphylococcal and Streptococcal isolates. Over half of the extracts were active against Enterobacteriaceae and obligate anaerobic isolates, including Prevotella melaninogenica, Porphyromonas gigivalis, Fusobacterium nucleatum, and Peptostreptococcus prevotii. Extracts of the Vitellaria paradoxa root, Bridellia ferruginea stem and twigs, Garcinia cola stem, Terminalia glaucescens root, Morinda lucida root, and Cnestis ferruginea fruit showed appreciable activity against all classes of bacterial isolates. The extracts of these plants may serve as sources for chemotherapeutic agents for the management of orofacial infections.