ABSTRACT
Annonamuricata also called as Sour sop is a, flowering evergreen tree native to Mexico, Cuba, Central America and parts of India. The miracle tree as it is widely known, is a natural cancer killer that is 10,000 times stronger than chemotherapy. Based on these miraculous claims, the leaves of these plants were used as an extract at varying concentrations as an antimicrobial agent against clinical pathogens.
CHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study
Annonamuricatabelongs to the family of Annonaceae. It is reputed for its edible fruit that is commonly called soursop (Ali, 2003). The fruit has slight acidic taste when ripe. Annonamuricata isused in traditional medicine in many regions. The fresh leaves when crushed are applied on skin eruption for quick healing. A poultice of young A. muricataleaf is applied on the skin to alleviate rheumatism and other skins like eczema.When applied during the healing of wounds it results in less or no skin scars (Akhtar and Iqbal, 2002). The decoction can also be used as wet compress on s wollen feet and other inflammations. The juice of the fruits is taken orally as herb remedy of arthritis, haematuria and liver ailments. The leaf tea is used for catarrh in the Peruvian Andes. The seed extracts are used to kill external parasites, head lice, and worms.
In the Peruvian Amazon, the bark, root and leaves are used for the treatment of diabetes as well as sedative and antispasmodic drugs. The leaf or bark tea or combination of both is used as a sedative and heart tonic by the indigenes of Guyana. In the Brazilian Amazon, a leaf tea is used for liver problems and the oil of the leaves and unripe fruit is mixed with olive oil and used externally for neuralgia, rheumatism, and arthritic pain (Bhattaraj, 1992).