Phytochemical Analysis and Antimicrobial Properties of <i>Eucalyptus torelliana</i> Oils

Abstract

Normal oil and Essential oil from fresh leaves of Eucalyptus torelliana (F. Muell) were extracted using solvent (Soxhlet) and steam distillation extraction methods respectively. The leaves were screened for the presence of secondary metabolites and the extracted oils for their antimicrobial potentials. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of Phytates (27.81 mg/g) Phytic acids (7.833mg/g) Oxalates (3.061mg/g) Tannins (2.457mg/g) Phenols (30.00%) Flavonoids (2.948%) Saponins (3.166%) and Alkaloids (2.84%). In addition to this the leaves were found to contain anthraquinone. The two oils extracted from the leaves of Eucalyptus torelliana were studied for their antimicrobial activity against the following isolated microorganisms: Xanthomonas axonopodis, Shigella dysenterine, Pseudomonas solanecearium, Streptococcus faecales, Staphylococcus aureus, Salmonella enterica, Erwinia carotovora, Salmonella typhi. The oils were found to inhibit all the microorganism isolates. The zone of inhibition exhibited by the extracts on the tested microorganism was between 22-6mm. The oil extracts compared favourably with Ampiclox used as a standard control. The results obtained from this study reveals that the oils extracted from Eucalyptus torelliana has antibacterial activities against enteric pathogens and the oil may be potential source of new antimicrobials against enteric organisms.