In Ethiopian traditional medicine Capparis tomentosa treats tuberculosis, diarrhea, epilepsy, and malaria, while Cadaba rotundifolia for arthritis, tonsillitis and snake bites. Essential oils from the plant leaves were hydro-distilled using Clevenger apparatus and analyzed by GC-MS. SwissADME and ProTox-II assessed drug-likeness and ADMET of major compounds. Leaf extracts were tested against three bacterial strains using agar disc-diffusion method. GC-MS identified 25 compounds (89.7%) in C. tomentosa and 23 (95.47%) in C. rotundifolia. Major compounds (1-15) followed Lipinski's and Veber's rules, with compounds 2, 7, 9, and 12 in the Boiled-Egg's yellow region. Compounds 3, 4, 7, 11, and 12 had LD50 >5000 mg/kg, indicating lower toxicity than chloramphenicol (LD50 = 1500 mg/kg). At 5 μg/mL, C. tomentosa oil showed stronger inhibition against E. coli (10±0.0 mm) and P. aeruginosa (9.0±0.25 mm), its methanol and n-hexane extracts against E. coli (9.85±0.14 mm) and P. aeruginosa (8.1±0.19 mm), respectively. C. rotundifolia oil was more effective against P. aeruginosa (8±0.5 mm) than chloramphenicol (6.9±0.51 mm), while its n-hexane and methanol extracts inhibited P. aeruginosa (8.1±0.17 mm) and E. coli (8.0±0.31 mm), respectively. These findings support traditional medicinal use of the studied plants, and highlight their potential as sources of bioactive compounds.

KEY WORDS: Capparis tomentosa, Cadaba rotundifolia, Essential oils, GC-MS, In silico pharmacokinetic

Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2025, 39(2), 351-366.                                                             

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/bcse.v39i2.13