Antifungal activity of Tabernaemontana stapfiana Britten (Apocynaceae) Organic Extracts

The methanol and successive (hexane, dichlroromethane, ethyl acetate and methanol) extracts of leaves, fruits, root and stem barks of Tabernaemontana stapfiana Britten were investigated for antifungal activity against four fungi; Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Microsporum gypseum and Trichophyton mentagrophytes. The extracts of the different plant parts showed varied activities against the tested fungi with the stem and root barks showing significant antifungal activities. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of methanol and sequential extracts ranged between 31.25 and 8000 μg/ml while the minimum fungicidal concentrations (MFCs) ranged between 125 and 8000 μg/ml. Among the test microorganisms, Candida albicans was the most susceptible with the lowest MIC of 31.25 μg/ml followed by Cryptococcus neoformans with an MIC of 62.25 μg/ml. These results show that it is possible to find antifungal compounds in the extracts of T. stapfiana.