Journal of Medicine and Health Research

Otitis media is of public health importance especially among children. Treatment with conventional antibiotics is facing challenges of increasing drug resistance and toxicity, hence the compelling need for alternative sources of less toxic antimicrobial from natural sources which necessitated this study on Zingiber officinale. The plant was identified, analyzed and antibacterial activity tested by applying standard techniques. A total of 138 ear samples were analyzed using standard microbial culture method. Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolate was identified using biochemical tests and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). Antibiotic sensitivity tests were carried out and the isolate expressed resistance to three antibiotics and sensitive to the other five tested. Phytochemicals at varying proportions were identified. Results of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration(MBC) showed that Zingiber officinale expressed 25mg/ml MIC and 50mg/ml MBC against P. aeruginosa isolates. Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis showed a highest peak area of 16.1% noted for gingerol (ID = 442793) with a  Molecular weight of 244g/mol in Zingiber officinale; a compound with known antibacterial activity as previously demonstrated not only in previous studies but in this study. This study therefore has demonstrated the potential of the extract from this spice to contain active phytochemical substances that proved lethal to the growth of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, thus a potential antmicrobial lead discovered.