Assessment of the Antimicrobial Activities of Wood Apple (Aegle marmelos L.) Seed Extracts Against Selected Fungal and Bacterial Strains

Introduction: Aegle marmelos (L.) Correa, a member of the Rutaceae family, is a very common fruit and medicinal plant in Bangladesh. The seeds of Aegle marmelos has showed important therapeutic applications like Antiulcer, Phytoremediation , Antimicrobial , Antidiabeic and Neuroprotective role. Materials and Method: In the present investigation, methanol, ethyl acetate and chloroform extracts of A. marmelos seeds were assessed for their antifungal activity using well diffusion methods against two fungal strains Fusarium oxysporum and Colletotrichum melongenae and antibacterial activity against five bacterial strains namely; Bacillus subtilis IFO3026, Sarcina lutea IFO3232, Xanthomonas campestris IAM1671, Escherichia coli IFO3007 and Pseudomonas sp. ATCC13867 using disk diffusion methods. Discussion: Among the three extracts methanol, ethyl acetate extracts revealed an antifungal activity against F. oxysporum and C. melongenae. But chloroform extract showed no activity against both the tested fungi. The seed extracts (512μg/disc) displayed a great potential of antibacterial activity against two Gram-positive bacteria: B. subtilis, S. lutea and two Gram-negative bacteria: E.coli, Pseudomonas sp. The zones of inhibition of different concentration of extracts against the tested bacteria were found in the range of 13mm -19 mm and the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were recorded 256 μg/ml against S. lutea by methanol extract. Results: The results obtained in the present study suggested that seed extracts of A. marmelos revealed a significant scope to develop a novel broad spectrum of antimicrobial herbal formulation.