EVALUATION OF ANTI-MICROBIAL PROPERTY OF GUAVA

INTRODUCTION:

Guava (Psidium guajava L.) or “bayabas” in the local dialect is a shrub or small tree that

grows up to seven (7) meters high. The genus Psidium belongs to the family Mrtaceae, which is

considered to have originated in tropical South America.1 This tree or shrub is mostly found on

tropical areas such as the Philippines. Guava is commonly used in this country as herbal

medicine. The medical character of Guava is acknowledged by the Department of Health for its

antiseptic property and proven health benefits. This plant is also recognized by those who

practice natural medicine.

The World Health Organization2 released a monograph on this plant with regards its

experimental pharmacology finding its medicinal uses on oral treatment of chronic diarrhea,

dysentery, gingivitis and intestinal parasites. It is also used as a traditional medicine such as

treatment of bronchitis, fever gastrointestinal ailments, menorrhagia, respiratory tract infections,

skin rashes, vaginal infections and worms.

The leaves are boiled, chopped or pounded to be used as an antiseptic for wound

disinfection. The antiseptic component of this fruit helps remove bacteria and germs found in the

wounds in order to prevent complications and infections. It also addresses oral health problems

including, but not limited to, tooth decay and gum infection. Boiled leaves can also be used as a

mouthwash.3

Thus, this study is undertaken to evaluate the anti-bacterial property of guava and to

enforce its usefulness as a treatment to varying ailments caused by bacteria. The objective of this

study is to verify and broaden the anti-microbial use of guava to common bacteria.

1
A. Mani, R. Mishra, and G. Thomas, “Elucidation of diversity among Psidium species using morphological and
SPAR methods,” Journal of Phytology, vol. 3, pp. 53–61, 2011.
2
WHO monographs on selected medicinal plants. Vol. 4. Retrieved from
http://www.who.int/medicines/areas/traditional/SelectMonoVol4.pdf
3
Guava as Skin Wash, August 11, 2014 retrieved from http://www.thestandard.com.ph/mobile/article/154673
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM:

This study is undertaken to evaluate the chemical component of guava that has an anti-

microbial effect and its potent property for the treatment of bacteria causing diseases common in

the community. Specifically, the study sought to answer the following questions:

1. What are the significant chemical components of guava that has an anti-microbial

property which will treat common bacteria causing disease in the community?

2. Which specific bacteria are reactive to the anti-microbial chemical component found in

guava?

HYPOTHESIS:

Ho: Guava does not have significant chemical components that have anti-microbial property

in treating diseases caused by common bacteria.

H1: Guava has significant chemical components that have anti-microbial property in treating

diseases caused by common bacteria.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

This study will benefit the following individuals:

The community in general. This study is to determine the significant chemical components of

guava to treat common bacteria causing disease.

The poor. This study will further prove the anti-microbial effects of guava to diseases caused by

common bacteria; hence, the findings will serve as an alternative medication to those who cannot

afford expensive medicines available in the market.

SCOPE AND DELIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The study is focused on the evaluation of the chemical components of guava which are

significant for the treatment of common bacteria-causing disease. The components will be

identified from the extracted leaves of guava.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

For better understanding of the study, the following terms are defined operationally:

Common bacteria-causing disease. This refers to the bacteria that cause the most illnesses,

hospitalizations and deaths in the locality. These diseases include food poisoning, gastritis and

ulcers, sexually transmitted disease, variety infections in the body, including boils, cellulitis,

abscesses, wound infections, and pneumonia.

Anti-microbial property. This refers to an agent that kills microorganisms or stops their growth.
 CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter presents the related literature to this study. Information in this section is

taken from various books and websites that is related to the study of the anti-microbial

components of guava.

Antibacterial evaluation of guava has been done by many researchers in guava essential

oil and solvent extracts. A research reported that the oils and extracts of guava penetrate the lipid

bilayer of the cell membrance, rendering it more permeable, leading to the leakage of vital cell

contents. Sanchez, et al. in their study evaluated guava against the gram positive and gram-

negative bacteria testing ethanol and water extract of guava leaves, stem, bark and root, and

aqueous extract against Staphylococcus aureus were found to be more active by using ethanol

and water extract than with just aqueous extract.4 Sacchetti et al5 reported that the oil showed a

strong resistance against Yarrowia lipolytica which is a pathogenic yeast. Another study6 have

also reported the antibacterial effect of guava leaves extracts and found that they inhibited the

growth of the S. aureus. Gnan and Demello7 testing guava leaf extract found good antimicrobial

activity against nine different strains of Staphylococcus aureus. The antibacterial activity of

guava leaf extract was tested against acne developing organisms by Qa'dan et al.8 concluding that

the leaf extracts may be beneficial in treating acne especially when they are known to have anti-

inflammatory activities.

Phytochemicals are nonnutritive chemicals produced by plants for their own protection,

but they have been found to protect humans against diseases through recent research. Scientists

have identified thousands of phytochemicals, although only small fractions have been studied

4
Kim S, Fung DYC. Antibacterial effect of crude water-soluble arrowroot (Puerariae radix) tea extracts on food-
borne pathogens in liquid medium. Letters in Applied Microbiology. (2004)
5
Sacchetti G, Maietti S, Muzzoli M, et al. Comparative evaluation of 11 essential oils of different origin as
functional antioxidants, antiradicals and antimicrobials in foods. Food Chemistry. (2005)
6
Vieira RHSDF, Rodrigues DDP, Gonçalves FA, De Menezes FGR, Aragão JS, Sousa OV. Microbicidal effect of
medicinal plant extracts (Psidium guajava Linn. and Carica papaya Linn.) upon bacteria isolated from fish muscle
and known to induce diarrhea in children. Revista do Instituto de Medicina Tropical de Sao Paulo. (2001)
7
Gnan SO, Demello MT. Inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus by aqueous Goiaba extracts. Journal of
Ethnopharmacology. (1999)
8
Qa’dan F, Thewaini A, Ali DA, Afifi R, Elkhawad A, Matalka KZ. The antimicrobial activities of Psidium
guajava and Juglans regia leaf extracts to acne-developing organisms. The American Journal of Chinese
Medicine. 2005
closely and each one works differently. Begum et al.9 reported the isolation of two triterpenoids:

guavanoic acid and guavacoumaric acid from the leaves of guava. Four flavonoids were isolated

and identified by Arima and Danno10 which were found to inhibit the growth of Salmonella

enteritidis and Bacillus cereus. A study was done to evaluate the spasmolytic activity of guava

leaf and was found that a compound called “aglycone quercetin” is responsible for spasmolytic

activities, which is formed when flavonoids of guava leaves are hydrolyzed by the

gastrointestinal fluids.

Another study was undertaken to evaluate the glycaemic potential of Psidium guajava

unripe fruit peel extract on blood glucose level of normal and streptozotocin induced diabetic

rats. Results had shown guava extract lowered the fasting blood glucose to a considerable degree

suggesting the hypoglycaemic as well as antidiabetic effect of guava extract in diabetic rats. 11

A study conducted to determine the antioxidative activities of the extracts from Psidium

guajava Linn leaves showed that it has effects on scavenging hydroxyl radicals and inhibiting

lipid peroxidation in the dose-dependent manner, The guava extracts possess the potential

antioxidative activities and the flavonoids may be one of their antioxidative components.12 The

objective for this study was to verify if the reported modes of the antidiarrhoeal action should be

broadened to include direct antimicrobial actions on some of the more common bacteria known

to cause toxin-induced acute diarrhoea. 10 organisms grown separately on nutrient agar

plateswere subjected to guava water extract and results have shown that the growth of all these

organisms was inhibited suggesting the antidiarrhoeal activity.13

9
Begum S, Hassan SI, Siddiqui BS. Two new triterpenoids from the fresh leaves of Psidium guajava . Planta
Medica. (2002)
10
Arima H, Danno G. Isolation of antimicrobial compounds from guava (Psidium guajava L.) and their structural
elucidation. Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry. (2002)
11
Indian Journal of Medical Research (2009).
12
Wei sheng yan jiu = Journal of hygiene research (2007).
13
The Malaysian Journal of Medical Sciences (1999)
 CHAPTER 3

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Research Design

This chapter presents the research methodology. It discusses the research design, the manner of

collection of the extract

Preparation of Plant Extract

The leaf samples were collected from guava trees growing at the residence of

____________________________. Guava leaf samples were collected into plastic bags with

appropriate label. The time interval between the collection of the samples and the

experimentation process is limited to three (3) hours to maintain freshness.14

Leaf Extraction

The leaves are collected are washed in tap water. Thereafter, these leaves are dried and placed in

a blender to reduce particle size of this sample. Solvents were used to identify the chemical

components of the extracts. The leaf extract

RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

INSTRUMENT VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY

SCORING PROCEDURE

STATISTICAL TREATMENT

14
Azwanida NN. A Review on the Extraction Methods Use in Medicinal Plants, Principle, Strength and Limitation.
(2001) Retrieved from https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/a-review-on-the-extraction-methods-use-in-
medicinal-plants-principle-strength-and-limitation-2167-0412-1000196.php?aid=58448