Phytochemical Screening and Antimicrobial Activity of Methanolic Extract from Genus Phellodendron (Cork Tree) Barks

Abstract

The present study examined the phytochemical and antimicrobial properties of a methanolic bark extract from a cork tree (Genus Phellodendron). Alkaloids, carbohydrates, steroids, reducing sugars, oils and fats, gums, volatile oil, flavonoids, proteins, amino acids, cysteine, anthraquinone glycoside, tannins, and phenolic chemicals were all found during the phytochemical screening. Due to the presence of oils, non-reducing polysaccharides and saponin glycoside were not present, and the solubility test verified insolubility in 90% ethanol and water. Studies on phytochemicals and antimicrobials were conducted using 95% methanolic extracts. The four test organisms employed in antibiotic investigations were staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus species, and Pseudomonas auriginosa. Two techniques were used to experiment: the disc-diffusion method and the cup-plate approach.Given that the methanolic extract's Minimal Inhibitory Concentrations (MIC) were roughly 256 µg/ml, it is clear that cork trees have antimicrobial properties. Their mode of action may involve blocking the synthesis of proteins at the transcriptional or translational level or peptidoglycan synthesis at the membrane level. The presence of marmine (immature bark) and fagarine (mature bark), which also have antiulcer and abortifacient properties, may be the cause of the bark extract's antibacterial qualities. The findings offer encouraging baseline data for the possible application of this plant and some of its components in managing microbial illnesses.