Abstract
Albizia coriaria Welw ex. Oliver is a customary African medicinal plant, which has a long history of utilization in the management of oxidative stress-induced and bacterial diseases. However, there is no report on the phytochemicals, antioxidant, and antibacterial activities of its leaves. The aim of this study was therefore to compare the phytochemicals, antioxidant, and antibacterial potential of A. coriaria leaves from Jinja, Kole, and Mbarara districts of Uganda. Shade-dried leaf samples were ground into powder and successively extracted with ethyl acetate, ethanol, and distilled water. Phytochemical screening indicated the presence of alkaloids, phenols, saponins, flavonoids, cardiac glycosides, tannins, and terpenes as the major secondary metabolites in the extracts. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents and total in vitro antioxidant activity were found to be the highest for ethanolic extracts, with the highest contents (101.72 ± 0.22 mg GAE/g DW; 13.23 ± 0.03 mg QE/g DW) and antioxidant potential (IC(50) = 18.65 ± 0.06 mg/mL) being for leaves from Mbarara district. Antibacterial activity of the extracts determined by agar disc diffusion method revealed that ethanolic extracts had higher antibacterial activities with mean zones of inhibition of 6.00 ± 1.73 to 10.00 ± 1.73 mm, 5.00 ± 1.00 to 12.30 ± 1.53 mm, 17.00 ± 0.00 to 25.00 ± 2.65 mm, and 9.00 ± 1.73 to 16.00 ± 1.73 mm for Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Salmonella typhi, respectively. Ethyl acetate extracts of A. coriaria leaves from Kole and Mbarara had lower antibacterial activities, while aqueous extracts and ethyl acetate extract of leaves from Jinja showed no antibacterial activity. The current study for the first time established that A. coriaria leaves possess therapeutic phytochemicals with significant in vitro antioxidant and antibacterial activities, which lend credence to their use in traditional management of oxidative stress-induced conditions and bacterial diseases in Uganda. Structural elucidation of the responsible pure compounds for the observed bioactivities as well as toxicity studies of the extracts is recommended.