An Insight into Antimicrobial Properties of <em>Eucalyptus </em>Species in Africa: A Systematic Review

The rise of antimicrobial resistance poses a significant challenge to global health, necessitating the exploration for novel antimicrobial agents. Eucalyptus species, widely used in traditional African medicine, have shown promise in this regard. This systematic review investigates the antimicrobial potential of Eucalyptus species used in Africa. A systematic search was conducted via PubMed, Scopus, and Embase for African studies investigating the antimicrobial potential of Eucalyptus using the query: "Eucalyptus" AND ("Antimicrobial" OR "Antibacterial") AND (list of African countries). A total of 585 studies were retrieved and exported to Mendeley Desktop for de-duplication. Based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria, only African research on the antibacterial activity of eucalyptus were included in the selection of studies. The included studies covered nine (9) countries across various regions in Africa, and twenty (20) Eucalyptus species with the most frequently studied species being Eucalyptus globulus, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, and Eucalyptus torelliana. The Eucalyptus extracts were reported to exhibits good inhibitory actions against a wide range of microorganisms. The findings emphasize the importance of species selection and extraction methods in maximizing antimicrobial efficacy and calls for their exploitation as therapeutic agents in various biomedical applications.