Abstract
The current study reports antibacterial and antidiarrheal activity of aqueous extract of Prosopis cineraria bark (PCAqE) against Enterobacter cloacae isolated from drinking water. In antidiarrheal assays, PCAqE (400 mg/kg) reduced defecation frequency by 57.29% and fecal weight to 1.053 ± 0.128 g compared to 2.26 ± 0.25 g in controls. It also inhibited 89.11% of charcoal meal transit in gastrointestinal motility tests, outperforming the standard drug loperamide (47.87% inhibition). Histopathological evaluation showed PCAqE preserved intestinal mucosal integrity, preventing tissue damage. The LC-MS/MS analysis of PCAqE revealed 19 different active chemical constituents, mainly flavonoids, flavone, and glycosyloxyflavone families that could be linked to observed antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties in PCAqE. Overall, the findings support the use of PCAqE as a promising natural remedy for managing bacterial infections and diarrheal diseases, especially those related to waterborne pathogens.