Investigation of Phytochemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Fruit Extract of Rosa abyssinica

Rosa abyssinica is traditionally used for treatment of many diseases. The fruit of Rosa abyssinica (locally known as ‘‘Kega’’ in Amharic and ‘‘qaqawii’’ in Afan Oromo) is used for the treatment of tapeworm, bacterial infections, gastric problem, respiratory problem, cancer and wounds. Hence, the extract of the fruit of Rosa abyssinica is expected to contain high antibacterial activity, new cost-effective therapies with better efficiency. In view of its traditional uses and the absence of scientific reports so far, an attempt was made to explore the chemical, antibacterial and antioxidant potential of the solvent extracts of the roots of R. abyssinica. However, to the best of our knowledge there was no report on investigation of phytochemicals and amendment of the antibacterial activity of its fruits. The main objective of the study is to investigate its phytochemical constituents andevaluate antibacterial activity. In this regard, the fruit (1500 g) was extracted with ethanolto obtain 13.40 g (3.83 %) yields. The crude ethanol extract was then partitioned between n-hexane and ethyl acetate. Phytochemical screening analysis conducted on fruit ethanol extract of Rosa abyssinicashowed the presence of phytochemicals such as alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, steroids, tannins, terpenoids, anthraquinone glycosides and carbohydrate. FTIR spectra of the fractions also confirmed the presence of phenols, flavonoids, triterpenoids, saponins and tannins of bioactive compound found in Rosa abyssinicafruit extract. The extract was also evaluated for their antibacterial activities using disc diffusion method against S. aureus, S. pyogenes, E. coli and K. pneumonia. Crude extracts (100 mg/mL) showed strong activity (13±0.5, 12.5±0.5, 11.5±0.7, 13±1.0 mm) against S. aureus, S. pyogenes, E. coli and K. pneumonia respectively, and comparable zone of inhibition (antibacterial activity) when compared to ciprofloxacin(18, 17, 19 and 17.5 mm). Therefore fruit extract of Rosa Abyssinica crude extract contains strong antibacterial compounds which need further investigation. 3