Abstract
The challenge of the continuous development of antibiotic resistance by pathogenic bacteria is a major health concern worldwide. The efforts at finding solutions to this challenge have led to the development of interest and investigation on the use of natural honey in the treatment of bacterial infections. This study was therefore carried out to investigate the efficacy of the Nigerian natural honey in the treatment of wound infections. Samples of honey purchased from Ijebu-Ode, Nigeria were investigated for antimicrobial effect, using bacterial isolates from infected wound swabs, that were cultured and examined for morphological and biochemical characteristics by standard methods. The antibacterial activity, Minimum Inhibition Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Bactericidal Concentration (MBC) of the honey samples were determined by doubling dilution and agar diffusion methods. The bacterial isolates reacted differently to the various concentrations of honey. The MIC ranged between 7.5 mg/ml to 1.88 mg/ml for Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus pyogenes; while Salmonella Typhi and Shigella dysenteriae both had MIC of 3.75 mg/ml. The MBC values ranged between 7.5 mg/ml to 1.88 mg/ml for all the bacterial isolates. This study confirms the suitability of the Nigerian honey as therapeutic agent against infection by the tested bacteria pathogens. The need for international standardization of the quality of honey products for therapeutic and prophylactic application was also discussed.
Keywords: Nigerian honey, Antibiotic resistance, Wound infection, Bacterial pathogens, Effective chemotherapy.