Abstract
This research was conducted to evaluate the therapeutic potential of human umbilical cord blood, by determining
their effect on bacterial pathogens which included: Streptobacillus sp, Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Staphylococcus
aureus, Salmonella typhimurium, and Escherichia coli. Cord blood samples were obtained from hospitals following
consent of the women. The antimicrobial activity was determined by the agar-well diffusion method. There was
significant difference (p < 0.05) in the activity observed between the different concentrations of the samples against
the test bacteria, while there was no significant difference (p > 0.05) observed in the activity of the different samples
against the test isolates. Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria were sensitive to the samples at varying
concentrations. Sample A did not yield any significant activity against most of the test organisms, possibly due to
denaturation during preservation as a result of power failure. At 100 % concentration, S. aureus was most
susceptible to sample B (21.7 ± 0.3 mm) and sample C (22.0 ± 0.6 mm) while E. coli was the least susceptible to
sample C (11.7 ± 0.5 mm). E. coli and S. typhimurium with no zone of inhibition were observed to be the least
susceptible to sample B. The MIC ranged from 12.5 % to 100 % while the MBC ranged from 25 % to 100 %.
Results revealed that human cord blood could complement synthetic drugs in the fight against bacterial diseases.

Keywords: Antibacterial; Umbilical cord blood; Hematopoietic stem cells