Antifungal activity and preliminary phytochemical analysis of bark extracts of Moringa oleifera Lam

The Chloroform, Ethyl acetate, Methanol and aqueous extracts of Moringa oleifera bark traditionally used in folkloric medicine for the treatment of various infections were investigated for their antifungal activity against 2 fungal strains viz., Rizopus stolonifer and Microsporum gypseum by disc diffusion method. The different extracts of the plant species reduced colony growth of both the fungi to a great degree compared with the control treatment. The test pathogens differed considerably with regard to their susceptibility to plant extracts. Microsporum gypseum was the most susceptible being inhibited by most of the extracts. Methanol was found to be the best extractive solvent for antifungal activity in the test plant. The preliminary phytochemical analysis of Moringa oleifera bark extract revealed the presence of alkaloids, flavanoids, phenols, tannins, saponins and steroids. The results provide justification for the use of the plant in folk medicine to treat various infectious diseases.