Corresponding Author: M. Komala, M. Pharm E-mail: nsaleem_basha@rediffmail.com Received on: 05-05-09, Accepted on: 24-11-09 I J P International Journal of Pharmagenesis 1(2), July-December 2010, pp. 217-220 Original Research Article Preliminary Phytochemical Screening and Antimicrobial Studies of Aqueous and Alcoholic Extracts of Mangifera Indica (Anacardiaceace) Stem Bark K. Arulselvi 1 , M. Komala 2* , N. Saleem Basha 3 and R. Meenakshi Sundaram 4 1,2,4 Department of Pharmaceutics, Mohamed Sathak A.J. College of Pharmacy, Chennai-600 119, Tamilnadu, India 3 Department of Pharmaceutics, Orotta University of health sciences, Asmara, Eritrea. Abstract: The flora of Indian medicinal plants is potent source of bioactive principal. Extracts of stem barks of Mangifera indica were subjected to preliminary phytochemical screening for the presence of plant secondary metabolites and invitro antibacterial and antifungal studies. The result of the preliminary investigation revealed the presence of alkaloids, Glycosides, Tannins, flavonoids and Triterpenes. The alcoholic and aqueous extract of Mangifera indica barks were investigated for invitro antimicrobial activity using the agar disc diffusion technique. Eight strains of human pathogenic microorganisms comprising 3 gram positive i.e., Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus cereus, 3 gram negative bacteria i.e., Escherichia coli , Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa and 2 fungi i.e., Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans were utilized for the studies, the antibacterial activies were compared with standard drug Ciprofloxacin at the concentration of 50 g/disc. Similarly the antifungal activities were compared with standard drug Ketoconazole at the concentration of 50 mg/disc. Both the extracts displayed overwhelming concentration dependent antimicrobial properties. The aqueous extract showed good activity against gram (+) ve bacteria compared to gram (-) ve bacteria. Similarly, the alcoholic extract showed good activity against gram (-) ve bacteria than gram (+) ve bacteria. In the anti fungal assay, the growth of Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans used, were inhibited in the same manner comparable to ketoconazole the reference drug included in the study. So, at conclusion both the extracts of stem bark of Mangifera indica seems to justify their ethnomedical uses. Keywords: Mangifera indica, Antibacterial activity, Antifungal Activity, agar disc diffusion. Introduction The different systems of medicine practiced in India like Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, Amchi and local health traditions, utilize a large number of plants for the treatment of human diseases. But the efficacy of many of the plants yet to be verified [1, 2] . An estimate suggests that about 13,000 plant species world wide are known to have used as drugs. The trend of using natural products has increased and the active plant extracts are frequently screened for new drugs discoveries and for the presence of antimicrobials [3] . Moreover India is a country with a vast reserve of natural resources and rich history of traditional medicine [4] . Presently, the medical fraternity and the patients have increasingly started using plants to overcome various illness and sufferings mainly to obviate the profound side effects encountered in usage of modern drugs [5, 6] . The Present article deals with the screening of Mangifera indica for their antimicrobial activity against various micro organisms. The plant Mangifera indica belongs to family Anacardiaceace . It has been used in the indigenous system of Medicine for the treatment of various ailments. Several therapeutic uses as Anti Parasitic, Antiseptic, Anti asthmatic,