article · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Antimicrobial resistance continues to complicate the management of enteric and wound infections, particularly in low-resource settings where plant-based remedies remain widely used. This study evaluated the in vitro antibacterial activity of aqueous extracts of Psidium guajava and Carica papaya leaves against clinical isolates of Salmonella spp. and Shigella spp., and further compared these findings with the antibiotic susceptibility profiles of Salmonella spp. isolated from wound infections among patients in the female surgical ward of the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri. Standard agar-well diffusion, MIC, and MBC assays were performed using extract concentrations ranging from 50–150 mg/mL. Wound swab samples (n = 50) were processed using conventional cultural and biochemical methods, and antibiotic susceptibility testing was conducted using the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion technique. Aqueous extracts of both plants demonstrated no measurable inhibitory activity against any of the enteric isolates at all tested concentrations, whereas ciprofloxacin (positive control) produced clearly defined inhibition zones, confirming assay validity. In contrast, clinical Salmonella isolates from wound infections exhibited moderate to high susceptibility to conventional antibiotics, with the highest sensitivity recorded against ciprofloxacin and levofloxacin (70% each), followed by ceftriaxone and cefixime (60%). Azithromycin and cefuroxime demonstrated comparatively lower activity (50% each). The comparative findings underscore the limited efficacy of crude aqueous plant extracts against Gram-negative pathogens, while reaffirming the continued relevance of fluoroquinolones and third-generation cephalosporins in managing Salmonella-associated wound infections. The study highlights the need for improved extraction methods, phytochemical concentration techniques, and more targeted exploration of solvent polarity when assessing plant-derived antimicrobials.
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DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.18115798
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