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The roots and bark of Schotia brachypetala are used in South African traditional
medicine as a remedy for dysentery and diarrhoea. The paucity of pharmacological
and chemical data on this plant prompted an investigation into its antibacterial
activity. The differences in activity of ethanol and water extracts with respect
to plant part, season and geographical position were analysed. No extreme fluctuations
in activity were noted. Two other Schotia species, S. afra and S.
capitata,
were included in the study, and both displayed good in vitro antibacterial
activity. The storage of the plant, either as dried, ground plant material
at room temperature, or as an extract residue at -15°C, had little effect
on the antibacterial activity. In general, the ethanolic extracts were more
active than the aqueous extracts. The chemical profiles on TLC chromatograms
were compared and found to be very similar in the case of ethanol extracts
prepared in different months of the year, and from different trees. The extracts
of the three species and of the leaves stored under various conditions also
showed similar TLC fingerprints, however, various plant parts of S. brachypetala showed distinctly different chemical compositions.

South African Journal of Botany 2002, 68: 41–46