Search

Abstract Pregnant women in rural Uganda largely rely on medicinal plants for inducing labor, treating postpartum hemorrhage (PPH), and inducing abortion. 90% of the women in both rural and urban Uganda use plants to manage pregnancy symptoms like constipation, heartburn, morning sickness, body aches, nausea, and vomiting. After delivery women continue using plants to manage postpartum complications and for infant care especially herbal baths. This study documented how ethnomedical folklore has been used to aid childbirth, manage postpartum hemorrhage, and induce abortion. Methods A cross-sectional ethnobotanical survey was conducted from May – December 2023 in Najjemebe sub-county, Buikwe district. 206 respondents from 12 villages were selected using snowball sampling. Key informants included Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) and herbalists. Data was collected using semi-structured questionnaires and focus group discussions. Voucher specimens of the plants were identified and authenticated at Makerere University Herbarium. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Informant Consensus factor (ICF), Use Reports (URs), paired comparisons, and GraphPad Prism® version 9.0.0 software. Results All respondents (N = 206, 100%), used plants to induce labour, treat PPH, and induce abortion. One hundred four plant species were documented: most cited or preferred were: Hoslundia opposita (N = 109, 53%), Phytolacca dodecandra (N = 72, 35%), and Commelina erecta (N = 47, 23%). The plants belonged to 49 families, Lamiaceae (16.3%) and Fabaceae (14.3%) having the majority of the species. Herbs were 42 (40%) and trees 23 (22%). Oral administration 95(72%) was the commonest, then topical 19 (14.4%) and vaginal 14(10.6%). Conclusion Health surveys revealed that about 27% of deliveries in Uganda take place outside a health facility. Due to the oxytocic effects of plant species reported in this study, they play a triple role of being uterotonics, abortifacients, and treating postpartum haemmorhage. The dilemma lies in the unknown dosages and toxicity levels that could endanger both the mother’s and the unborn child’s lives. Due to Uganda’s high rates of population growth, overall fertility, maternal mortality, and morbidity, policies, and programmes on gendered health provision need to be reevaluated. Integrating herbal medicine into health care systems appears to be a feasible solution.

Albizia coriaria (Fabaceae) crude extracts are key ingredients of several licensed and unlicensed herbal products in East Africa. However, there is limited and often contradicting information regarding its toxicity. We therefore evaluated the acute and subacute toxicity of the ethanolic stem bark extract of A. coriaria in mature healthy Wistar albino rats following Lorke’s method and OECD guidelines 407. The LD50 of the ethanolic stem bark extract of A. coriaria was 2000 mg/kg. The acute toxicity signs observed included piloerection, hyperventilation, lethargy, and loss of righting reflex. There was a significant increase in aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, red blood cells and haemoglobin in rats after 28 days at the dose of 500 mg/kg. Histological analyses revealed multifocal random parenchymal necrosis and scattered periportal mononuclear inflammatory cells infiltration in the liver, interstitial nephritis in the kidney and multifocal lymphoid accumulation in the peribronchiolar and perivascular lung tissue at 500 mg/kg. The ethanolic stem bark of A. coriaria was therefore moderately toxic to the rats when administered in a single high oral dose within 24 h. The extract caused a dose dependent toxicity with significant damage to the kidney, liver and lung tissues at a dose of 500 mg/kg after 28 days. Herbal medicines containing A. coriaria extracts should be consumed cautiously due to likelihood of toxicity particularly at higher doses greater than 500 mg/kg.

Friable embryogenic callus (FEC) production is a prerequisite for the genetic transformation of cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz). This process necessitates the development of organized embryogenic structures (OES) as a precursor. However, the production of OES and FECs in cassava is dependent on the genotype. This study aimed to optimize somatic embryo production in elite Ugandan cassava genotypes (NASE13, NASE19, and NAROCASS1) and demonstrate genetic transformation using the enhanced green fluorescent protein (eGFP) gene. OES were induced by initiating leaf-lobe explants on Murashige and Skoog (MS) media at various concentrations of 24D and picloram followed by friable embryogenic callus (FEC) production and regeneration. There were highly significant differences among the different media compositions in the percentage response to OES formation (p

Abstract Background Malaria remains the leading cause of death in sub-Saharan Africa. Although recent developments such as malaria vaccine trials inspire optimism, the search for novel antimalarial drugs is urgently needed to control the mounting resistance of Plasmodium species to the available therapies. The present study was conducted to document ethnobotanical knowledge on the plants used to treat symptoms of malaria in Tororo district, a malaria-endemic region of Eastern Uganda. Methods An ethnobotanical study was carried out between February 2020 and September 2020 in 12 randomly selected villages of Tororo district. In total, 151 respondents (21 herbalists and 130 non-herbalists) were selected using multistage random sampling method. Their awareness of malaria, treatment-seeking behaviour and herbal treatment practices were obtained using semi-structured questionnaires and focus group discussions. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, paired comparison, preference ranking and informant consensus factor. Results A total of 45 plant species belonging to 26 families and 44 genera were used in the preparation of herbal medicines for management of malaria and its symptoms. The most frequently mentioned plant species were Vernonia amygdalina, Chamaecrista nigricans, Aloe nobilis, Warburgia ugandensis, Abrus precatorius, Kedrostis foetidissima, Senna occidentalis, Azadirachta indica and Mangifera indica. Leaves (67.3%) were the most used plant part while maceration (56%) was the major method of herbal remedy preparation. Oral route was the predominant mode of administration with inconsistencies in the posology prescribed. Conclusion This study showed that the identified medicinal plants in Tororo district, Uganda, are potential sources of new antimalarial drugs. This provides a basis for investigating the antimalarial efficacy, phytochemistry and toxicity of the unstudied species with high percentage use values to validate their use in the management of malaria.

Abstract The high global bacterial infection burden has created need to investigate the neglected potential drivers of pathogenic bacteria, to inform disease prevention. Kampala is facing a proliferation of herbalists, selling herbal medicine (HM), of largely unregulated microbiological quality. We evaluated the bacterial contamination burden in HM sold in Kampala, to support evidence-based redress. The total viable loads (TVL), total coliform counts (TCC), E. coli counts, and prevalence of selected bacterial strains in 140 HM were examined using conventional culture, following the guidelines of World Health Organization (WHO), and Uganda National Drug Authority (NDA). Data were analyzed using D'Agostino-Pearson test, frequencies, proportions, Chi-square, and Mann–Whitney U test with STATA version-15.0. Fifty (35.7%), fifty-nine (42.1%), and twelve (8.6%) HM were unsafe for human use because they exceeded WHO’s permissible limits for TVL, TCC, and E. coli counts respectively. Solids had significantly higher mean TVL than liquids. Violation of NDA’s guidelines was significantly associated with high TVL. Fifty-nine bacteria, viz., Klebsiella pneumoniae (n = 34; 57.6%), Escherichia. coli (12; 20.3%), Staphylococcus aureus (7; 11.9%), Klebsiella oxytoca (3; 5.1%), Bacillus cereus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter spp. (1; 1.7% each), were isolated from 45 (32.1%) samples. These bacteria can cause severe clinical diseases, and promote deterioration of HM potency.

Abstract Background Antimicrobial resistance is swiftly increasing all over the world. In Africa, it manifests more in pathogenic bacteria in form of antibiotic resistance (ABR). On this continent, bacterial contamination of commonly used herbal medicine (HM) is on the increase, but information about antimicrobial resistance in these contaminants is limited due to fragmented studies. Here, we analyzed research that characterized ABR in pathogenic bacteria isolated from HM in Africa since 2000; to generate a comprehensive understanding of the drug-resistant bacterial contamination burden in this region. Methods The study was conducted according to standards of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA). We searched for articles from 12 databases. These were: PubMed, Science Direct, Scifinder scholar, Google scholar, HerbMed, Medline, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau Abstracts, African Journal Online, and Biological Abstracts. Prevalence and ABR traits of bacterial isolates, Cochran’s Q test, and the I2 statistic for heterogeneity were evaluated using MedCalcs software. A random-effects model was used to determine the pooled prevalence of ABR traits. The potential sources of heterogeneity were examined through sensitivity analysis, subgroup analysis, and meta-regression at a 95% level of significance. Findings Eighteen studies met our inclusion criteria. The pooled prevalence of bacterial resistance to at least one conventional drug was 86.51% (95% CI = 61.247–99.357%). The studies were highly heterogeneous (I 2 = 99.17%; p

ABSTRACTHere, we report the efficient one-pot removal of heavy metal ions and pharmaceuticals using xerogel, activated carbon and gravel. The simplest xerogel from tetramethyl orthosilicate showed ∼ twice the adsorption capacity of activated carbon derived from banana peels at 600 °C and far greater (x 35) than quartz pellets of diameter ∼300 μm. Functional groups present in both xerogel and activated carbon greatly enhanced the adsorption process. The combination of the three adsorbents resulted in the removal of > 95% of heavy metal ions and pharmaceuticals from water. The data fitted well in linear equations of Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms, and pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetics, an indication for physisorption, chemisorption, adsorption and desorption processes during pollutant capture by the adsorbents.

Psilocybin-containing mushrooms, commonly known as magic mushrooms, have been used since ancient and recent times for depression and to improve quality of life. However, their anti-inflammatory properties are not known. The study aims at investing cytotoxicity; antioxidant; and, for the first time, anti-inflammatory effects of Psilocybe natalensis, a psilocybin-containing mushroom that grows in South Africa, on lipopolysaccharide-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages. Macrophage cells were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide and treated with different concentrations of Psilocybe natalensis mushroom extracted with boiling hot water, cold water and ethanol over 24 h. Quercetin and N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester were used as positive controls. Effects of extracts on the lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2, and cytokine activities were investigated. Phytochemical analysis, and the antioxidant and cytotoxicity of extracts, were determined. Results showed that the three extracts inhibited the lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2, and interleukin 1β cytokine production significantly in a dose-dependent manner close to that of the positive controls. A study proposed that ethanol and water extracts of Psilocybe natalensis mushroom were safe at concentrations used, and have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. Phytochemical analysis confirmed the presence of natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds in the mushroom extracts.

Kigelia africana has been used in the management of human ailments since time immemorial. Ethnobotanists have documented the traditional uses of K. africana, which include treatment of skin disorders, cancer and gynecological complaints, among others. This has interested scientists, who have examined K. africana plant parts for their bioactivity. This review provides an insightful understanding on the ethnobotany, phytochemistry and pharmacology of K. africana. Web search engines Google and Google Scholar, as well as the databases of PubMed, Scopus, JSTOR, HINARI, SID, AJOL and Springer Link, were exhaustively searched using key words and phrases. Institutional reports and conference papers were also consulted. A total of 125 relevant international literature sources meeting the inclusion criteria were included. Kigelia africana has biologically active phytochemicals, many of which have been isolated. Whilst the fruits are most often cited in pharmacological studies, other plant parts are also used in herbal preparations. Commercially available products have been formulated from K. africana, though many have not been fully standardized. Despite many efforts by researchers to scientifically validate traditional uses of K. africana, many remain merely claims, thus the need to conduct more research, scientifically validate other traditional uses, isolate new bioactive phytochemicals and standardize K. africana products.