ABSTRACT

 The reliance on plant parts as alternative antimicrobial agents in the treatment, prevention and management of various diseases and infections has been on the increase globally. Cucumeropsis mannii seeds are a good source of essential amino acids, essential fatty acids, minerals, vitamins, polyphenols and other important phytochemical, which are nutraceuticals explorable in tackling various illnesses. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antibacterial activity of Cucumeropsis mannii (melon seed) oil on clinical isolates obtained from wound infections. Melon seed was extracted for its oil using water and ethanol. The quality phytochemicals present in the oil were determined qualitatively using standard methods. The antibacterial activity of the melon oil extract against clinical isolates from wounds was determined using the agar well diffusion technique. The antibiotic susceptibility profile of the test isolates; Proteus mirabilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was determined using the disc diffusion assay. The phytochemical screening of the extract revealed the presence of alkaloids, saponins, flavonoids, tannins and the absence of terpenoid. The zones of inhibition against Proteus mirabilis ranged from 10.00mm-12.00mm. However, no zones of inhibition were recorded against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. The minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) of the extract against Proteus mirabilis was determined at 50mg/ml, however, it could only inhibit its growth as the extract did not have any bacteriocidal activity on the bacterium. Staphylococcus aureus showed sensitivity to rocephin and pefloxacin while Pseudomonas aeruginosa was resistant to all antibiotics, Proteus mirabilis was resistant to all antibiotics except gentamicin, pefloxacin, tarivid and ciprofloxacin. This study shows that Cucumeropsis mannii has rich source of phytochemicals including flavonoids, alkaloids, saponins and tannins, however it was only able to inhibit the growth of Proteus mirabilis. The inability of the extract to inhibit the growth of other test isolates could be because of their multidrug resistant status .