The Potential of African Herbs in Agro-pharmaceutical Industries

Plants play a vital role in improving health and livelihood of human in varied range of aspects. Bersama abyssinica Fressen is locally used in Tanzania for treatment of respiratory infections and for control of maize borers though the plant has never been investigated for such activity. This book has therefore compiled the study conducted to evaluate antimicrobial, insecticidal and cytotoxicity activity of Bersama abyssinica fruits, seeds, leaf, stem bark and root bark extracts. Eight bacterial species, two fast growing Mycobacteria species namely; Mycobacteria madagascariense and Mycobacteria indicus pranii and two fungal strains were used in antimicrobial assay. The Bersama abyssinica extracts exhibited antimicrobial activity with minimum inhibition concentration value range of 0.19 to 6.25 mg/mL against bacteria and fungi. Insecticidal activity of Bersama abyssinica extracts evaluated against Callosobruchus maculatus induced 100% C. maculatus mortality within 5 days and prevented egg eclosion and adult development. Hence these results suggest that B. abyssinica is a potential source of antimicrobial and insecticidal agents.