ABSTRACT

The antibacterial and antifungal properties of biodegradable plastic films against bacterial and fungal isolates of importance was evaluated in this study. Standard cultural and biochemical methods were used to isolate and identify microbes (bacteria and fungi) of importance to man. Phenotypic virulence properties of the isolates were determined using standard protocol while the antibacterial and antifungal sensitivity was carried out using Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion test. The sensitivity of the plastic films were also evaluated using same methods and the data were analyzed using Microsoft excel package. The results revealed that the identified bacterial isolates of importance were Staphylococcus aureus. Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica  and Serratia marcescens. The isolates were positive for phenotypic virulence properties such as lipase and hemolysin. The antibacterial sensitivity of the isolates showed that they were resistant to augmentin, erythromycin and telracyline. The multiple antibiotic resistance index revealed that all isolates were of public health importance as they had greater than the permissible limit of values (0.2) known to be within the safe range. The fungal isolates were Aspergillus niger, Cladosporium spp. Penicillium spp. and Mucor mucedo. The fungal isolates were also positive for phenotypic virulence such as protease and lipase and were also resistant to nystatin antifungal agents. The antibacterial and antifungal activity of the biodegradable plastic films showed zones of inhibition ranging from 0.00x0.00 mm to 6.67±0.33 mm. Overall, it was observed that there was no inhibition exhibited by the different templates of plastic films against Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, and Staphylococcus aureus. The only observable activity was against Serratia marcescens. Similar scenario was observed for the fungal isolates as all species of fungi were found to be resistant to biodegradable plastic films. The idea of producing plastic films with antibacterial properties is still in the infancy but further research can be encouraged to optimize conditions until the desired results are achieved.