Antimicrobial activity of Solanum aculeastrum

Solanum aculeastrum Dunal (Solanaceae) is used in traditional medicine to treat various human and animal diseases, specifically stomach disorders and various cancers, in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The fruit and leaf extracts of this plant were investigated for in vitro antimicrobial activity against 10 selected bacterial and 5 fungal strains. The methanolic extracts of both the fruits and the leaves showed appreciable activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria ranging from 4.0 to 10.0 mg/ml. Whereas the methanol extracts were the most active material, the water extracts showed the least activity against the bacteria. The methanol extracts were particularly inhibitory to the growth of the fungi with percentage inhibition ranging from 60.26% to 100% and 56.0% to 100% on Aspergillus flavus and Pencillium notatum, respectively. The acetone extracts were active against Aspergillus flavus (100%) and Pencillium notatum (64.81%), and the water extract of the fruit significantly inhibited the growth of P. notatum (69.89%). The most resistant organisms were Aspergillus niger, Candida albicans, and Fusarium oxysporum .