CONTRIBUTION TO THE KNOWLEDGE OF NIGERIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS – III. Study on Carica Papaya Seeds as a Source of a reliable antibiotic, the BITC

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Abstract
The aglycone of glucotropaeolin benzyl isothiocyanate (BITC) of Carica papaya was studied for its antibiotic and pharmacological activity as well as its toxicity. It is very fast decomposed whilst incubating the powdered seeds, but does not yield the by-products benzyl thiocyanate (BTC) and benzyl nitrile (BCN) as Lepidium. In spite of the low concentration amount of BITC (compared with that obtained from TropaeolumJ the average concentration of 6 mg/g would be sufficient for therapeutic purposes. To achieve maximal antibiotic effect it would be necessary to use freshly crushed seeds. The antifungal activity indicates that they are of use for treatment of fungal skin diseases possibly in combination with synthetic drugs. The large number of microorganisms sensitive to BITC would also suggests its possible use as a bacteriostatic and a bactericidal agent in cases of some intestinal and urinary infections. BITC is also eliminated in urine between 3–6 hours after administration. The toxicity of the seed in our experiments is low and that at the usual therapeutically effective single dose of 4–5 g of seeds (25–30 mg BITC) would not be harmful.

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