Phytochemical and antimicrobial properties of constituents of "Ogwu Odenigbo", a popular Nigerian herbal medicine for typhoid fever.

The ethylacetate-insoluble fraction of the methanol extract of "Ogwu Odenigbo" a popular Nigerian traditional herbal medicine for typhoid fever prepared from the stem bark of Cleistropholis patens Benth, (Annonaceae), was separated into 13 semi-characterized constituents by preparatory TLC. The in vitro antimicrobial activities of the 13 fractions were quantitatively and/or qualitatively assessed by the agar well diffusion method using Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhinium, Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans. The steroidal fraction was about 20 and 15 times more potent than penicillin and chloramphenicol respectively against B. subtilis, and about twice as active as penicillin G. or chloramphenicol against Klebsiella pneumoniae. The glycoside fractions 4/5, 6, 7 and the alkaloidal fraction 11 showed significant activity comparable to those of the controls against Klebsiella pneumoniae. The saponin fraction 1 was the only fraction active against Salmonella typhinium. Its activity was comparable to that of the controls against this organism.