ABSTRACT

This study evaluated the antibacterial activity of Citrus aurantifolia on respiratory pathogenic organisms and also looked at the antimicrobial effects of the biochemical constituents which could act as bioactive supplements. The respiratory pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumonia and Streptococci species employed as the test organisms were isolated from sputum samples using streak method of inoculation. These bacterial isolates were subjected to antibacterial susceptibility testing using extracts of lime, extracted with various solvents (chloroform, ethanol, and methanol). The diameters of the inhibition zones, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) were measured. Higher activities of the extract was observed on Staphylococcus aureus and Kiebsiella pneumonia. Diameters of 14mm and 20mm were recorded for Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumonia using the methanolic and ethanolic extracts of the fruit. This suggests that Citrus aurantfolia could serve as a good pharmaceutical tool in the production of drugs that could be used to combat infections affecting the respiratory tract. The biochemical constituents of the plant like tannin, saponin, flavonoid and alkaloid could also be extracted and purified and used as anti-respiratory bioactive supplements.