NATURAL PRODUCTS FROM PLANT BIODIVERSITY AND MALARIA

Dr. Joseph M Nguta,

UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI

MALARIA

Malaria is the most difficult problem afflicting people in the tropics

In Africa, more than 100 million people are infected annually, with a mortality of 1-1.5m a year

Currently the drug of choice is artemesinin and its derivatives

High rate of resistance development to drugs by the parasite makes the necessity for research in new antimalarial drugs

One possible solution is to carry out research on to the traditionally used herbal remedies

STUDY AREAMsambweni district

Conducting an interview

Herbal Clinic

Objectives of the study• To establish an inventory of plants and

formulations used to manage Malaria in Msambweni community

• To determine the efficacy and toxicity of the priority plants and formulation to the community.

• To isolate and characterize the bioactive compounds in the efficacious plants extracts

• Develop appropriate formulations based on identified bioactive compounds and indigenous knowledge

• To explore feasibility for commercialization

The study

• How do they identify malaria?• Which plants do they use to manage malaria?• Which is the most preferred plant?• Which part of plant do they use?• How is it formulated• Which is the route of administration?• Are the plants readily available?• Are the plants used safe?

How the Study was done Semistructured questionnaires and interviews Focused group discussion Botanical identification of the collected plants by a

taxonomist

Information gathered included • plant species• parts used• plant habit • method of preparation• dosage • vernacular names

Ethnodiagnosis

• The most frequently mentioned symptoms

• fever • joint pains • vomiting• tiredness• Loss of appetite• headache

Commonly used plants

27 species in 24 genera distributed in 20 families were documented.

13 species were reported for the first time The most commonly used species were Azadirachta indica (L) Burm. (95%) Zanthoxylum chalybeum (Eng) Engl. (25%) Aloe deserti Berger. (25%) Harrisonia abyssinica Oliv. (15%) Ricinus communis L.(10%)

Habit of the species used in treatment of malaria

41%

33%

22%

4% Shrub

HerbTreeLiana

Part of the species used in treatment of malaria.

Percentage frequency

Column1

Column20%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Percentage frequency

Discussion and conclusion The commonly used plants were Azadirachta indica (L) Burm,

Zanthoxylum chalybeum (Eng) Engl and Aloe deserti Berger. 13 plant species are documented for the first time for the

treatment of malaria Some species documented in this study have been widely

used as antimalarials in other continents e.g Ricinus communis, Lantana camara

The leaves were the most commonly used part Roots were the second most commonly used plant part-and

this calls for conservation and good harvesting practices

Way forward

• Evaluate safety and efficacy of these plants

• Carry out phytochemical tests• Report back to the community on the

findings

Acknowledgements

The Carnegie Corporation of New York for financially supporting this work through Regional Initiative in Science and Education (RISE-AFNNET)

The community of Msambweni district, for sharing their knowledge

The RISE-AFNNET Nairobi node for their positive criticism and constant encouragement

THANK YOU