ANTIFUNGAL ACTIVITY OF LALLEY (Lawsonia Inermis) LEAVES ON SELECTED CLINICAL ISOLATES

Abstract

Nature has been the source of the basic needs like food, clothing, shelter and medicines. Natural products derived from plants have been used to help mankind sustain healthy living. In recent years, herbal remedies have been considered as an alternative medicine. These plant-based drugs are reported to have been successfully used to cure hypertension, jaundice, skin disease and other infectious diseases. Some of the skin diseases are those arising from fungi infections such as ringworm, athletes’ foot, dandruff, etc. This study is focused on demonstrating the antifungal activity of Lawsonia inermis on dandruff isolates. The pulverized Lalley leaves were gotten from a local outlet in Kaduna and was extracted with 70% methanol and with the aid of cold maceration and partitioned to get chloroform and aqueous extract. 30 dandruff samples were collected from students in Delta state University and was labelled F1-F30 for identification. The samples were cultured and isolated in Saboraud dextrose agar (SDA), SDA mixed with Tween 80, and SDA mixed with Power oil vegetable oil to simulate normal hair conditions. Identification using biochemical tests like catalase, fermentation and microscopy tests were done. Phytochemical screening was carried out, Tannin, steroids, saponins, alkaloids, terpenoids were present, while cardiac glycosides and flavonoids were absent. Ten (10) samples were catalase negative, and 20 were positive. All the samples fermented the sugars used (lactose, sucrose and glucose), and all the samples were gram positive. Samples F16 and F27 are Trichophyton tonsurans and they showed resistance to the extracts but were susceptible to the positive control, Nystatin. The other samples were Malassezia furfur and Malassezia pachydermatis respectively. The highest antifungal activity of the extracts was at 100mg/ml and the least at 3.125mg/ml. From this study, it shows that Nystatin is active against T. tonsurans but mot against the Malassezia species. In conclusion, the findings in this study supports the use of these plant extracts in the ethnomedical treatment of dandruff caused by Malassezia species.