Antibacterial Activity of Ethanol Extract of Taro Leaves (Colocasia esculenta L.) against Gram-Negative Bacteria

Abstract

This study aims to determine the potential antibacterial activity of ethanol extract of taro leaves (Colocasia esculenta L.) against gram-negative bacteria. This type of research is a laboratory experiment. The research procedure was through the sorting of taro leaves (Colocasia esculenta L.). The taro leaves were washed using running water and then dried in an oven at 105⁰C for 60 minutes. The testing method for taro leaf ethanol extract against gram-negative bacteria is carried out in two stages. The testing method for the activity of the fourth fraction of effervescent granules uses the Bioautography TLC Method, while the antibacterial activity test uses the Agar Diffusion Method. The results showed that the fourth fraction of effervescent granules had good pharmaceutical properties. In this case, the angle of the repose test resulted in 32,087°. The flow time test yielded 7.687 seconds. The flow velocity test yielded 4.772 g/s, and the foam downtime test yielded 32.33. The fourth fraction of effervescent granules test using the Bioautography TLC Method gave an effect against the bacteria salmonella typhi, escherichia coli, and vibrio cholerae at an Rf value of 0.74. Meanwhile, the antibacterial activity test using the Agar Diffusion Method gave the most significant effect against salmonella typhi bacteria with an inhibition zone diameter of 20.4 mm.