Phytochemical and In Vitro Antibacterial Properties and GC-MS Profiling of Methanolic Leaf and Fruit Extracts of Euphorbia hirta L. against Selected Clinical Bacterial Isolates

The growing challenge of antimicrobial resistance necessitated the search for alternative therapeutic agents. Euphorbia hirta has long been utilized for its medicinal properties, and the current study investigated the phytochemical constituents and antibacterial properties of methanol extracts from the fruits and leaves of E. hirta. This study, therefore, aims to evaluate the phytochemical and antibacterial properties and gas chromatogram of methanolic leaf and fruit extracts of E. hirta against selected organisms. Phytochemical screening and Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis were conducted following established protocols to identify bioactive compounds and antimicrobial constituents. The extract’s antibacterial efficacy was examined against Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 19111, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas alcaligenes, and Staphylococcus debuckii using the agar well diffusion method. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) were ascertained using the broth macrodilution method. The qualitative and quantitative phytochemical profiling showed that alkaloids, saponins, phenols, flavonoids, tannins, and terpenoids were present, with phenol (44.5 ± 0.02 mg/g) being most abundant in the fruit and saponins (46.48 ± 0.02 mg/g) in the leaves. GC-MS analysis detected bioactive compounds, including hexadecanoic acid, phytol, glycerine, and methyl stearate, known for their antimicrobial properties. The MIC values for the fruit and leaf extracts were observed between 2.19 and 8.75 mg/mL and 6.25 and 25 mg/mL, respectively. Correspondingly, the MBC values for the fruit and leaf extracts ranged from 2.19 to 17.5 mg/mL and 25 to 100 mg/mL, respectively. The methanol fruit extract exhibited higher inhibitory and bactericidal effects against the test organisms compared to the leaf extract. This study validated E. hirta’s historic usage as an antibacterial agent derived from nature and suggested its potential application in developing alternative therapies.