Short report Antimicrobial flavonoids from the stem bark of Erythrina burttii Abiy Yenesew a, * , Solomon Derese a , Jacob O. Midiwo a , Christine C. Bii b , Matthias Heydenreich c , Martin G. Peter c a Department of Chemistry, University of Nairobi, P. O. Box 30197, Nairobi, Kenya b Centre for Microbiology Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, P.O. Box 19464, Nairobi, Kenya c Institut fu ¨ r Chemie, Universita ¨t Potsdam, P.O. Box 60 15 53, D-14415 Potsdam, Germany Received 21 July 2004; accepted 26 April 2005 Abstract The chloroform extract of the stem bark of Erythrina burttii showed antifungal and antibacterial activities using the disk diffusion method. Flavonoids were identified as the active principles. Activities were observed against fungi and Gram(+) bacteria, but the Gram(À) bacteria Escherichia coli was resistant. D 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Erythrina burttii ; Stem bark; Flavonoids; Antibacterial; Antifungal 1. Plant Erythrina burttii Ball. (Leguminosae), stem bark, collected near Emali town, on the Nairobi–Mombasa road, Kenya, in March 2001, identified by Mr. S.G. Mathenge. Voucher specimen is deposited in Botany Department, University of Nairobi. 0367-326X/$ - see front matter D 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.fitote.2005.04.006 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +254 2 4449004x2170; fax: +254 2 4446138. E-mail address: ayenesew@uonbi.ac.ke (A. Yenesew). Fitoterapia 76 (2005) 469 – 472 www.elsevier.com/locate/fitote