Phytochemical and Antimicrobial Analysis of Piper Celtidifirme Opiz and Potential Use as Remedy to Covid-19

Abstract

This study aims to validate a claim for the traditional use of Piper celtidiformeopiz to cure pneumonia, asthma, and tuberculosis (TB), to establish preliminary data on the phytochemical and antimicrobial investigations, and to delineate how Piper celtidiformeopiz can be considered as a possible cure to COVID-19. Apart from other organic solvents (methanol and chloroform), petroleum ether, due to its greater non-polarity, yields a more specific extract as it only extracts the most polar molecules. Antimicrobial extracts of petroleum ether indicated 81% antimicrobial activity, more significant than the standards (Chloramphenicol and Streptomycin) used. The results have expressed a firm approval on the significance of Piper celtidiformeopiz as a potential treatment to communicable diseases, most notably Klebsiella pneumonia, Streptococcus pneumonia Staphylococcus aureus, the three malicious pathogens that affect the lungs, as observed in the study; which are relative to COVID-19. Evaluation of the results with more emphasis on the bioassay and characterization of phytochemicals signifies their necessity for pharmaceutical research and development.