ABSTRACT

 Medicinal plants have been found to play a significant role in the treatment of human ailments due to the resistance nature of synthetic drugs aside been very expensive. One of the leading medicinal plant found to have therapeutic power is Amaranthus spinosus Linn. This present study is aimed at investigating the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of ethanolic root extract of Amaranthus spinosus Linn. The antioxidant activity of root extract of Amaranthus spinosus was accessed by in- vitro experimental parameters such as DPPH (2,2-Diphenly -1- picrylhydrazyl) free radical scavenging activity and Nitric oxide radical assay and Anti-lipid peroxidation. In this study, DPPH was found to be concentration-dependent. The result showed that Amaranthus spinosus ethanolic root extract have showed potent in vitro antioxidant activity that may be attributed to the phenolic compounds present. The ethanolic root extract of Amaranthus spinosus was evaluated for antimicrobial activity against 6 bacteria’s such as (Proteus mirabillis, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Proteus aureginosa, Lactococcus bacillus, Klebsiella pnueumoniae, and Staphylococcus aureus') the in -vitro antimicrobial activity was performed by Agar Disc Diffusion method with Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA). The extract of lOOOmg showed the highest inhibitory zone (33.00mm±1.00mm) on Staphylococcus aureus, while the extract of 62.5mg showed the least inhibitory zone (1.66mm±5.77mm) on Proteus mirabillis. All the organisms were susceptible to the plant extracts used for the antimicrobial test. This study strongly recommends the use of Amaranthus spinosus ethanolic root extracts as an Antimicrobial agent and can be used to cure many ailments caused by these microorganisms.