ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF Tridax procumbens Linn

Tridax procumbens Linn belongs to the family Compositae. The extracts of Tridax procumbens have been reported to have various pharmacological effects like mosquito repellant activity, leishmanicidal, hepatoprotective effect on liver antioxidant system, immunomodulatory effect, wound healing activity and antiprotozoal effects.The methanolic and ethyl acetate extracts of Tridax procumbens were used for this study. The antibacterial activity of methanolic and ethyl acetate leaf extracts of Tridax procumbens Linn (L.) were examined against Escherichia coli,,Klebsiella pneumoniae,Salmonella typhi, Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus. Antibacterial activity was investigated by disc and agarwell diffusion method. The ethyl acetate extracts of the Tridax procumbens showed effective inhibition against the Staphylococcus aureus thancompared to other organism. Therefore the leaves of Tridax procumbens can be considered to be the promising source of antimicrobial compounds.