PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING AND ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF Eclipta alba (L.) HASSK

Medicinal plants possess all the phytoconstituents which serves as a source of bioactive chemicals which are necessary for the significant pharmacological actions without any adverse effects. They can be used for the development of new classes of possibly safer drugs or medicines to cure various ailments. Eclipta alba is an herb which is widely used in traditional cuisine and in folk medicine for the treatment of various ailments. The present study was carried out to find out the preliminary phytochemical screening of Eclipta alba. The plant leaf samples were collected; powdered and bioactive substances were extracted with chloroform and acetone by water soxhelet extractor. Phytochemical analysis proved that the antibacterial activity of Eclipta alba is due to the presence of phytochemical compounds like alkaloids, flavonoids, steroids, triterpenes, phenolic compounds, saponins, carbohydrates, tannins and amino acids. The antimicrobial activity was determined by using agar well and disc diffusion method. Extracts with 1ml of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) were added into the well. Chloroform, acetone and water extracted samples were tested against the most resistant microbial strain Salmonella typhi. The most susceptible gram positive bacterium, Bacillus subtilis which was inhibited by all extracts from Eclipta alba while Salmonella typhi and E. coli were highly resistant among the Gram negative bacteria. The plant leaves of Eclipta alba are used for various biological activities and used in the treatment of memory disorders, edema, fever, rheumatic joint pains, digestion, hepatitis, enlarged spleen and skin disorders.