The alarming increase in multidrug resistance of pathogenic microorganisms to conventional drugs in recent years has prompted the search for new leads in alternative remedies in natural products. Hence, this study was aimed at evaluating the antimicrobial properties of Phragmanthera capitata, a parasitic mistletoe growing on rubber trees. The in vitro antimicrobial activities of the acetone, methanol, ethanol, and aqueous extracts were investigated using five gram-negative and five gram-positive bacteria and four fungi. A 96-well resazurin broth and agar dilution techniques were used for the determination of the Minimum Inhibitory and Bactericidal Concentrations. The antibacterial activity of the organic extracts had comparative effects on all the bacteria with a MIC of 1.25 to 5 mg/mL and MBC of 2.5 to 10 mg/mL. However, the acetone extract showed higher bactericidal effect while the aqueous extract was not active. The organic solvent extracts also showed antifungal activities on two of the fungi with a MIC of 1.25 mg/mL to 10 mg/mL. However, the aqueous extract had the highest activity inhibiting all the fungi with a MIC of ≤0.3125 to 1.25 mg/mL. The study supports the ethnomedicinal claims of P. capitata as a remedy for the diseases/infections caused by these organisms.
Phragmanthera capitata (Sprengel) Balle is a mistletoe of the Loranthaceae family that has been explored for its therapeutic properties in folklore for ages. However, there had been an alarming increase in misidentification of species in this family. This may be due in part to the lack of species taxonomic information. Hence, this study wishes to highlight the range of micromorphological features which could complement the information database of this species. Scanning electron, light, and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) microscopies were used for this study. The result revealed a paracytic type of stomata with mean abaxial and adaxial density of 225.42 ± 3.67 mm 2 and 137.21 ± 5.65 mm 2 , respectively, and mean guard cell length of 26.45 ± 0.02 m. Oval-shaped lenticels with a mean length of 34.29 ± 0.26 m were observed. They were arranged in parallel on the epidermal cells of the abaxial midrib. Densely packed stellate trichomes were revealed on the abaxial epidermis with a density of 63.32 ± 3.70 mm 2 . Tracheary elements, which are tightly packed with granules believed to be proteins, were observed in the cross sections of the twig. Deposits chiefly composed of silicon, aluminium, potassium, and iron were recorded in the EDX analysis. This study revealed detailed descriptive micromorphological structures which could serve as a source of information and reference for the taxonomic description of P. capitata.
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